Six-Minute Walk Test: A Valuable Test, When Properly Standardized

Abstract

To the Editor: We read with great interest the article by Steffen et al titled “Age- and Gender-Related Test Performance in Community-Dwelling Elderly People: Six-Minute Walk Test, Berg Balance Scale, Timed Up & Go Test, and Gait Speeds” in the February 2002 issue of Physical Therapy . The effort to give insight into normal performances on frequently used clinical tests such as the Six-Minute Walk Test, the Berg Balance Scale, the Timed Up & Go Test, and measures of comfortable and maximal gait speed is very much appreciated. The authors investigated a group of patients that is highly relevant to physical therapist practice–community-dwelling elderly people who are 60 to 90 years of age–using different easy-to-perform tests, including the Six-Minute Walk Test. The Six-Minute Walk Test is an interesting test in patients with chronic diseases. Although often regarded as a submaximal test, it results in a steady-state oxygen uptake (Vo2), at near peak Vo2 in patients with severe obstructive lung disease.1 This test also has been shown to be related to muscle function rather than cardiac or ventilatory impairment, even in patients with severe lung disease.2 We agree with the authors that normative values are of utmost importance in interpreting the results of the Six-Minute Walk Test. In addition, standardization issues are critical for comparison of test results.3 Although we believe that age and sex are important in the interpretation of the measurements, other factors also may be important. Our research has indicated that height was the most important marker of walking distance.4 In addition, age, …