Abstract
Background
The 6-min walking test (6-MWT) is probably the most widely used test to measure the functional capacity in cardiac rehabilitation. Although the American Thoracic Society recommends testing on a flat surface, treadmills are also used for testing. Therefore, we want to investigate the interchangeability of results of treadmill and hallway 6-MWT in a population of patients participating in a cardiac rehabilitation programme.
Design
Preexperimental design.
Setting
University hospital Department of Cardiology and Physiotherapy.
Participants
Patients entering the cardiac rehabilitation programme of the Maastricht University Cardiology Department.
Main outcome measure
Agreement in 6-min walking distance between the hallway and treadmill test results were calculated by taking the mean difference between the two methods and the 95% confidence interval of the difference and plotting this against the average of the two test results. A Bland and Altman plot was constructed, showing the mean difference and the 95% limits of agreement between the two methods.
Results
Sixty-nine patients participated in this study. Mean difference between walking on a treadmill and walking in a hallway was 9 m in favour of the hallway test. The 95% limits of agreement were ± 118 m.
Conclusion
Results of the 6-MWT conducted in a hallway or on a treadmill are not interchangeable, because of large between-test variations in the distances walked by individual participants.
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