title: The 6-Minute Walk Test as a Predictor of Summit Success on Denali.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To test whether the 6-minute walk test (6MWT), including postexercise vital sign measurements and distance walked, predicts summit success on Denali, AK.
  
  
  METHODS
  This was a prospective observational study of healthy volunteers between the ages of 18 and 65 years who had been at 4267 m for less than 24 hours on Denali. Physiologic measurements were made after the 6MWT. Subjects then attempted to summit at their own pace and, at the time of descent, completed a Lake Louise Acute Mountain Sickness Questionnaire and reported maximum elevation reached.
  
  
  RESULTS
  One hundred twenty-one participants enrolled in the study. Data were collected on 111 subjects (92% response rate), of whom 60% summited. On univariate analysis, there was no association between any postexercise vital sign and summit success. Specifically, there was no significant difference in the mean postexercise peripheral oxygen saturation (Spo2) between summiters (75%) and nonsummiters (74%; 95% CI, -3 to 1; P = .37). The distance a subject walked in 6 minutes (6MWTD) was longer in summiters (617 m) compared with nonsummiters (560 m; 95% CI, 7.6 to 106; P = .02). However, this significance was not maintained on a multivariate analysis performed to control for age, sex, and guide status (P = .08), leading to the conclusion that 6MWTD was not a robust predictor of summit success.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  This study did not show a correlation between postexercise oxygen saturation or 6MWTD and summit success on Denali.
authors.affiliation: Stanford/Kaiser Emergency Medicine Residency Program, Stanford, CA (Drs Shea and Ladd). Electronic address: anderson.kate@gmail.com.
authors.forename: Katherine M
authors.initials: KM
authors.lastname: Shea
authors.affiliation: Stanford/Kaiser Emergency Medicine Residency Program, Stanford, CA (Drs Shea and Ladd).
authors.forename: Eric R
authors.initials: ER
authors.lastname: Ladd
authors.affiliation: Department of Emergency Medicine, Stanford University School of Medicine, Stanford, CA (Drs Lipman, Wang, and Auerbach; Ms Pirrotta, and Ms Vongsachang).
authors.forename: Grant S
authors.initials: GS
authors.lastname: Lipman
authors.affiliation: University of New England College of Osteopathic Medicine, Biddeford, ME (Mr Bagley).
authors.forename: Patrick
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Bagley
authors.affiliation: Department of Emergency Medicine, Stanford University School of Medicine, Stanford, CA (Drs Lipman, Wang, and Auerbach; Ms Pirrotta, and Ms Vongsachang).
authors.forename: Elizabeth A
authors.initials: EA
authors.lastname: Pirrotta
authors.affiliation: Department of Emergency Medicine, Stanford University School of Medicine, Stanford, CA (Drs Lipman, Wang, and Auerbach; Ms Pirrotta, and Ms Vongsachang).
authors.forename: Hurnan
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Vongsachang
authors.affiliation: Department of Emergency Medicine, Stanford University School of Medicine, Stanford, CA (Drs Lipman, Wang, and Auerbach; Ms Pirrotta, and Ms Vongsachang).
authors.forename: N Ewen
authors.initials: NE
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.affiliation: Department of Emergency Medicine, Stanford University School of Medicine, Stanford, CA (Drs Lipman, Wang, and Auerbach; Ms Pirrotta, and Ms Vongsachang).
authors.forename: Paul S
authors.initials: PS
authors.lastname: Auerbach
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000413:Alaska; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009051:Mountaineering / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D011446:Prospective Studies; D000070857:Walk Test / Q000379:methods*; D055815:Young Adult
keywords: 6-minute walk test; altitude sickness; exercise test; hypoxia; mountaineering