Clinical correlation between the 6-min walk test andcardiopulmonary exercise testing in patients with pulmonary arterial hypertension.

BACKGROUND/AIM: The aims of the present study were to assess the relationship between the distance walked during the 6-min walk test (6MWT) and exercise capacity as determined by cardiopulmonary exercise testing (CPET) in patients with pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH) and to investigate the prognostic value of the 6MWT in comparison to clinical parameters of CPET and echocardiography findings.

MATERIALS AND METHODS: Thirty PAH patients participated in the study. Subject characteristics and New York Heart Association (NYHA) classifications were recorded. All subjects completed the 6MWT and CPET. Relationships among the variables were analyzed by the Pearson correlation test. Correlation coefficients between 6MWT distance and other variables were determined by linear regression analysis.

RESULTS: Distance walked in the 6MWT was significantly correlated with the following exercise parameters: peak oxygen consumption, work load, and metabolic equivalents. Additionally, cardiac index was correlated with peak oxygen consumption and metabolic equivalents. We also showed that cardiac index and age were two significant determinants for exercise performance, accounting for 35.4% of the variance in the 6MWT.

CONCLUSION: The 6MWT provides information that may be a better index for the patient's NYHA functional class determination than maximal exercise testing.