The measurement properties of fitness measures and health status for persons with spinal cord injuries

Objective: To assess the measurement properties of measures used to evaluat e fitness and health status in the spinal cord injury (SCI) population. Design: Inception cohort assessed during standardized exercise protocols at admission, discharge, and 8-week follow-up from a SCI rehabilitation progr am. Setting: Urban tertiary care hospital. Patients: One hundred two patients with SCI. Results: Measures at higher levels of physical exertion generally showed hi gher stability between test and retest. Resting measures, blood lactates, a nd respiratory exchange ratios were not stable. Heart rate, blood pressure, lactate levels, ventilation rates, and activities of daily living measures did not reflect the construct of aerobic fitness. The use of ratings of pe rceived exertion to predict heart rate was found to be inaccurate in the SC I population. Conclusion: Power output and (V) over dot O-2 at maximal workload, and rati ngs of perceived exertion at a standard workload demonstrated stability and sensitivity to therapeutic change, indicating acceptable measurement prope rties for the assessment of aerobic fitness in SCI patients. Some other com monly used measures can be used with less confidence.