Reference Values for Peak Exercise Cardiac Output in Healthy Individuals

Background

Cardiac output () is a key parameter in the assessment of cardiac function, its measurement being crucial for the diagnosis, treatment, and prognostic evaluation of all heart diseases. Until recently, determination at peak exercise has been possible through invasive methods, so that normal values were obtained in studies based on small populations.

Methods

Nowadays, peak can be measured noninvasively by means of the inert gas rebreathing (IGR) technique. The present study was undertaken to provide reference values for peak in the normal general population and to obtain a formula able to estimate peak exercise from measured peak oxygen uptake (o2).

Results

We studied 500 normal subjects (age, 44.9 ± 1.5 years; range, 18-77 years; 260 men, 240 women) who underwent a maximal cardiopulmonary exercise test with peak measurement by IGR. In the overall study sample, peak was 13.2 ± 3.5 L/min (men, 15.3 ± 3.3 L/min; women, 11.0 ± 2.0 L/min; P Conclusions

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