Face scale rating of perceived exertion during cardiopulmonary exercise test

This study aimed to investigate the correlation between the face scale and heart rate (HR), exercise load and oxygen uptake (V̇O₂) during cardiopulmonary exercise testing. Methods This was a prospective, observational study of face scale rating of perceived exertion (RPE) and HR, exercise load and V̇O₂ during cardiopulmonary exercise testing. A total of 30 healthy college men and 21 healthy college women were included. Subjects performed a cardiopulmonary exercise test with ramps and an increment increase in workload of 20 W/min. We recorded the responses of subjects using a face scale for RPE, HR, exercise load and V̇O₂ every minute during the cardiopulmonary exercise test.

In men, there was a significant positive correlation between the face scale RPE and HR (ρ=0.856, p<0.01), exercise load (ρ=0.888, p<0.01) and V̇O₂ (ρ=0.878, p<0.01) during the cardiopulmonary exercise test. Similarly, in women, there was a significant positive correlation between the face scale RPE and HR (ρ=0.885, p<0.01), exercise load (ρ=0.908, p<0.01) and V̇O₂ (ρ=0.895, p<0.01) during the cardiopulmonary exercise tests.

The face scale proposed in this study was related to physiological parameters, which suggests that it may be used to determine the intensity of exercise in healthy adults.