[A protocol for testing aerobic capacity in children and adolescents with congenital heart defects]

Abstract

Testing aerobic capacity is compulsory when diagnosing the severity of heart failure in adults. Up until now, physical testing of children and adolescents with congenital heart disease has only been done sporadically. An ergometer bicycle is the most extensively used method for testing adults, but it is usually designed for adults and can seldom be adjusted properly for small children. Treadmill is the most extensively used ergometer for testing children; it does not require any adjustment and allows a more dynamic pattern of movement where more muscle mass is in use. A test-protocol for children should allow for warming-up, should not have too steep an incline and there should only be small increments between each stage. Likewise the increments between each stage should become smaller as the workload increases. This is especially relevant for children and adolescents with congenital heart diseases, since they usually have less muscle mass than healthy subjects. Oxygen uptake should be measured during the test together with EKG, blood pressure and oxygen saturation. In this way, valuable information on the patients' aerobic capacity is gained.