ATS Pulmonary Function Laboratory Manual

ATS Pulmonary Function Laboratory Management & Procedure Manual | 3rd Edition

Effective Date: 2014 Version #1

Chapter 18

Procedure Name: 6-Minute-Walk Test

Purpose or Principle In the assessment of functional capacity in patients with respiratory disease, objective measures are considered bet- ter than questioning patients about their abilities to perform activities (such as asking the number of blocks that can be walked). The 12-minute-walking test, originally described by Cooper (1) in 1968, was adapted to assess disability in patients with chronic bronchitis (2). However, the 12-minute-walk was found to be too exhausting for patients with some respiratory diseases, and the 6-minute-walk was shown to provide as good discrimination and repeat- ability as the 12-minute-walk (3). The 6-minute-walk test (6MWT) is a practical simple test to perform that does not require exercise equipment. The 6MWT measures the distance that a patient can walk quickly on a flat hard surface in a period of 6 minutes (the 6MWD). The 6MWT evaluates the global and integrated responses of all body systems involved during exercise. It does not provide specific information on the function of each of the different organs and systems involved as is possible with the cardiopulmonary exercise test. Most patients do not achieve maximal exercise capacity during the 6MWT, and instead, choose their own level of intensity. The most common use of the 6MWT is to measure the response to therapy in patients with a severe cardio- pulmonary disease. The patient’s pre-treatment 6MWD is compared with their post-treatment value (4–8). The 6MWT is also used as a one-time measure of the functional status of patients with COPD (9, 10). Although it is not a required element of the test, other measures including the change in oxygen saturation during the walk test have

been used as functional measures. Table 18.1 presents the reported uses for the test. The contraindications for performing the 6MWT are presented in Table 18.2 (11).

Equipment, Supplies and Location The 6MWT will be performed indoors, along a flat, long, straight, corridor with a hard surface and with little traffic. The walking course should be approximately 30 meters (100 feet) in length (11). The course will be marked with visible markers (e.g., traffic cones). A starting line, which marks the beginning and end of each 60 meter lap, will be marked on the floor. Incremental markers of distance on the floor or wall (e.g., every 10 meters) help to measure the distance walked.

201

© 2016 AmericanThoracic Society www.thoracic.org