Reliability of peak treadmill exercise tests in mild Alzheimer disease

Int J Neurosci. 2011 Aug;121(8):450-6. doi: 10.3109/00207454.2011.574762. Epub 2011 May 17.

Abstract

Introduction: The purpose of this study was to determine the reliability of treadmill peak exercise testing in people with very mild-to-mild Alzheimer disease (AD).

Methods: Sixteen subjects with very mild-to-mild AD performed graded peak treadmill exercise tests twice within a 14-day period. Heart rate, oxygen consumption, and respiratory exchange ratio (RER) were continuously monitored. Peak values were analyzed for absolute level of agreement.

Results: Fourteen participants (87.5%) completed testing. Reliability was excellent with total peak oxygen consumption (VO2peak) (ml/kg/min) highly correlated across the two tests (r = 0.94, p < .001) with an intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC[3,1]) of 0.92 (95% confidence interval (CI) = 0.78, 0.97). The standard error of measurement (SEM) for VO2peak was 1.29 (95% CI = 0.88, 1.89).

Conclusions: These results indicate that peak exercise testing on a treadmill is reliable in the early stages of AD.

Publication types

  • Clinical Trial
  • Research Support, N.I.H., Extramural
  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Aged
  • Aged, 80 and over
  • Alzheimer Disease / rehabilitation*
  • Confidence Intervals
  • Exercise Test / methods*
  • Female
  • Heart Rate / physiology
  • Humans
  • Male
  • Middle Aged
  • Oxygen Consumption / physiology
  • Reproducibility of Results
  • Respiratory Function Tests
  • Time Factors