Extended steep ramp test normative values for 19-24-year-old healthy active young adults.

ABSTRACT: PURPOSE:To extend currently available sex and age-specific normative values in children and adolescents for the peak work rate (WRpeak) attained at the steep ramp test (SRT) to healthy active young adults. METHODS:Healthy male and female participants aged between 19 and 24 years were recruited. After screening and anthropometric measurements, participants performed a SRT on a cycle ergometer (increments of 25 W/10 s), monitoring and recording SRT-WRpeak, heart rate (HR), and blood pressure (BP) at rest and directly after peak exercise. RESULTS:Fifty-seven participants (31 males and 26 females; median age of 21.3 years) volunteered and were tested. Anthropometrics, resting BP and lung function were all within normal ranges. Ninety-three percent of the participants attained a peak HR (HRpeak)?>?80% of predicted (mean HRpeak 87?±?5% of predicted). No differences were found in resting and peak exercise variables between females and males, except for absolute SRT-WRpeak (350 W [Q1: 306; Q3: 371] and 487 W [Q1: 450; Q3: 517], respectively) and SRT-WRpeak normalized for body mass (relative SRT-WRpeak; 5.4?±?0.5 and 6.2?±?0.6 W/kg, respectively). Low-to-moderate correlations (? [0.02-0.71]) were observed between SRT-WRpeak and anthropometric variables for females and males separately. Extended reference curves (8-24-year-old subjects) for SRT performance show different trends between male and female subjects when modelled against age, body height, and body mass. CONCLUSIONS:The present study provides sex-, age-, body height-, and body mass-related normative values (presented as reference centiles) for absolute and relative SRT performance throughout childhood and early adulthood.

SUBMITTER: Werkman MS 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC6969871 | biostudies-literature | 2020 Jan

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature