title: Performance on a work-simulating firefighter test versus approved laboratory tests for firefighters and applicants.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Firefighters must meet minimum physical demands. The Norwegian Labour Inspection Authority (NLIA) has approved a standardised treadmill walking test and 3 simple strength tests for smoke divers. The results of the Trondheim test were compared with those of the NLIA tests taking into account possible effects of age, experience level and gender.
  
  
  METHODS
  Four groups of participants took part in the tests: 19 young experienced firefighters, 24 senior male firefighters and inexperienced applicants, 12 male and 8 female.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Oxygen uptake (VO2) at exhaustion rose linearly by the duration of the treadmill test. Time spent on the Trondheim test was closely related to performance time and peak VO2 on the treadmill test. Senior experienced firefighters did not perform better than equally fit young applicants. However, female applicants performed poorer on the Trondheim test than on the treadmill test. Performance on the Trondheim test was not closely related to muscle strength beyond a minimum. CONCLUSION. Firefighters completing the Trondheim test in under 19 min fit the requirements of the NLIA treadmill test. The Trondheim test can be used as an alternative to the NLIA tests for testing aerobic fitness but not for muscular strength. Women's result of the Trondheim test were poorer than the results of the NLIA treadmill test, probably because of their lower body mass.
authors.affiliation: North-Trøndelag University College, Levanger, Norway. erna.v.heimburg@hint.no
authors.forename: Erna
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: von Heimburg
authors.forename: Jon Ingulf
authors.initials: JI
authors.lastname: Medbø
authors.forename: Mariann
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Sandsund
authors.forename: Randi Eidsmo
authors.initials: RE
authors.lastname: Reinertsen
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000704:Analysis of Variance; D000886:Anthropometry; D005080:Exercise Test / Q000379:methods; D005260:Female; D061388:Firefighters; D006801:Humans; D007773:Lactates / Q000097:blood; D016014:Linear Models; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010101:Oxygen Consumption / Q000502:physiology; D010809:Physical Fitness / Q000502:physiology; D011361:Professional Competence; D013647:Task Performance and Analysis
chemical_list: D007773:Lactates