Exercise testing in survivors of intensive care--is there a role for cardiopulmonary exercise testing?

The aims of this study were to assess the feasibility of cardiopulmonary exercise testing (CPET) for the early assessment of cardiorespiratory fitness in general adult intensive care unit (ICU) survivors and to characterize the pathophysiology of exercise limitation in this population.

Fifty general ICU survivors (ventilated for ≥ 5 days) performed a maximal cycle ergometer CPET within 6 weeks of hospital discharge. Health-related quality of life was measured by the Medical Outcome Study Short Form 36 version 2.0 questionnaire.

Fifty patients (median age, 57 years; median Acute Physiology And Chronic Health Evaluation II score, 16) completed a CPET 24 ± 14 days after hospital discharge with no adverse events. Significant exercise limitation was present with peak Vo(2) 56% ± 16% predicted and anaerobic threshold (AT) 41% ± 13% of peak predicted Vo(2). Prospectively stratified subgroup comparison showed that patients ventilated for 14 days or more had a significantly lower AT and peak Vo(2) than those ventilated for 5 to 14 days (AT: 9.6 vs 11.7 mL/kg per minute O(2), P = .009; peak Vo(2): 12.9 vs 15.3 mL/kg per minute O(2), P = .022). At peak exercise, heart rate reserve was 25% ± 14%, breathing reserve was 47% ± 19%, and the respiratory exchange ratio was 0.96 ± 0.11. Ventilatory equivalents for CO(2) (Eqco(2)) were 39 ± 9.

Significant exercise limitation is evident in patients who have had critical illness. Etiology of exercise limitation appears multifactorial, with general deconditioning and muscle weakness as major contributory factors. Early CPET appears a practical method of assessing exercise capacity in ICU survivors. Cardiopulmonary exercise testing could be used to select patients who may benefit most from a targeted physical rehabilitation program, aid in exercise prescription, and help assess the response to intervention.