The 2-minute walk test is not a valid method to determine aerobic capacity in persons with Multiple Sclerosis.
Heleen Beckerman, Martin Heine, Lizanne E van den Akker and 1 others
PMID 31498142WHAT IT FOUND
In people with MS and severe fatigue, walking distance in 2 minutes did not accurately estimate peak oxygen uptake.
It accounted for only 19.5% of the differences, so use it to judge walking, not aerobic capacity.
Key findings
01The distance walked in 2 minutes correlated only 0.441 with peak oxygen uptake, below the 0.70 standard for good criterion validity.
02The 2-minute walk distance explained 19.5% of the variance in peak oxygen uptake, and the absolute residual error was 5.47 mL/kg/min.
03After age, gender, and EDSS were added, the model explained 33.2% of variance, but the 2-minute walk distance was no longer a statistically significant independent predictor.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for PTs
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What it does not show
The analysis included only participants who completed both tests, and they were already fatigued and had EDSS scores from 0.0 to 6.0, so it may not apply to people with MS outside that range. Twelve participants used a walking aid during the test, and walking difficulty itself may have limited the walk distance. Peak oxygen uptake was measured on a cycle ergometer, not a treadmill, so walking-specific cardiopulmonary capacity was not assessed. The two centres used different assessors and slightly different equipment. No heart rate or oxygen consumption was measured during the walk, so the intensity of the 2-minute walk is unknown.
Declared interests
The authors declared no conflict of interest. The work was funded by Fonds NutsOhra as part of the TREFAMS-ACE Research Programme.
The easy way to misread this
Do not read this as saying that all walking tests are invalid in MS. The study tested only the 2-minute walk distance as a predictor of peak oxygen uptake, and it did not measure heart rate or oxygen consumption during the walk.