Journal
AMERICAN JOURNAL OF PHYSICAL MEDICINE & REHABILITATION
Volume 84, Issue 7, Pages 492-500Publisher
LIPPINCOTT WILLIAMS & WILKINS
DOI: 10.1097/01.phm.0000166883.97562.cd
Keywords
head injury; treadmill testing; consistency; minimal detectable change; rehabilitation
Categories
Ask authors/readers for more resources
Objective: To assess the reliability of the submaximal and peak responses to a treadmill graded exercise test in individuals recovering from traumatic brain injury. Design: A total of 15 individuals (11 men, 4 women; 28.5 +/- 9.2 yrs) with moderate to severe traumatic brain injury admitted into a postacute residential treatment center 10 +/- 7 mos after injury performed two treadmill graded exercise tests separated by 4-8 days. Heart rate, oxygen consumption (in milliliters per minute per kilogram), minute ventilation (in liters per minute), and respiratory exchange ratio (carbon dioxide output/oxygen consumption) were continuously monitored at 1-min intervals. Submaximal and peak values were analyzed for absolute level of agreement using the intraclass correlation coefficient. Results: The submaximal intraclass correlation coefficient values for all variables between minutes 3 and 7 ranged from 0.80 to 0.93. Submaximal intraclass correlation coefficients before and in the subsequent minutes were less than optimal for heart rate and minute ventilation. Lower intensity workloads elicited slightly better agreement than higher intensity workloads. The peak response intraclass correlation coefficients ranged from 0.77 (heart rate) to 0.92 (oxygen consumption). Conclusion: Despite the presence of other co-morbidities, subjects recovering from traumatic brain injury provided consistent individual responses, allowing for reliable assessments of Gardiorespiratory conditioning programs. Assessments of ambulatory efficiency, endurance, and aerobic fitness adaptations as a result of treatment for persons with traumatic brain injury should include analyses of submaximal responses to graded exercise.
Authors
I am an author on this paper
Click your name to claim this paper and add it to your profile.
Reviews
Recommended
No Data Available