Current data confirm that the 6MWT , ISWT and ESWT are valid , reliable and responsive to change with some interventions .
However , results are sensitive to small changes in methodology .
Field walking tests are commonly employed to evaluate exercise capacity , assess prognosis and evaluate treatment response in chronic respiratory diseases .
In recent years , there has been a wealth of new literature pertinent to the conduct of the 6-min walk test ( 6MWT ) , and a growing evidence base describing the incremental and endurance shuttle walk tests ( ISWT and ESWT , respectively ) .
The aim of this document is to describe the st and ard operating procedures for the 6MWT , ISWT and ESWT , which can be consistently employed by clinicians and research ers .
Predicting outcomes from 6-minute walk distance in chronic obstructive pulmonary disease.
BACKGROUND Exercise tolerance is an important clinical aspect of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease that can be easily and reliably measured with the 6-minute walking test ( 6MWT ) . To improve the utility of the 6MWT for patient and health care system management , the interpretation of the functional status measure in relation to death and hospitalization should be eluci date d. METHODS Three-year , prospect i ve , multicenter observational study to evaluate the predictive power of 6MWD for death or exacerbation-related hospitalization and to evaluate the factors that help determine 6MWD . RESULTS We measured 6MWD at baseline and annually in 2110 patients with clinical ly stable Global Initiative for Obstructive Lung Disease ( GOLD ) stage II-IV COPD and recorded exacerbation-related hospitalizations and all-cause mortality .  During the study , 200 patients died and 650 were hospitalized .  Using receiver operating characteristics , the best predictive thresholds of the 6MWD were 334 m for increased risk of death and 357 m for exacerbation-related hospitalization ( area under the curve 0.67 and 0.60 respectively ) ; however , the discriminatory thresholds , especially for mortality , were influenced by age . The mean ( SE ) 6MWD declined by 1.6 ( 1.2 ) m per year in GOLD II , 9.8 ( 1.3 ) m per year in GOLD III , and 8.5 ( 2.4 ) m per year in GOLD IV . CONCLUSION The 6MWD provides prognostic information that may be useful for identifying high-risk patients with COPD
Current data confirm that the 6MWT , ISWT and ESWT are valid , reliable and responsive to change with some interventions .
However , results are sensitive to small changes in methodology .
Field walking tests are commonly employed to evaluate exercise capacity , assess prognosis and evaluate treatment response in chronic respiratory diseases .
In recent years , there has been a wealth of new literature pertinent to the conduct of the 6-min walk test ( 6MWT ) , and a growing evidence base describing the incremental and endurance shuttle walk tests ( ISWT and ESWT , respectively ) .
The aim of this document is to describe the st and ard operating procedures for the 6MWT , ISWT and ESWT , which can be consistently employed by clinicians and research ers .