Cogollos-de-la-Peña Rocío, Espí-López Gemma Victoria, Fuentes-Aparicio Laura, Monzani Lucas, Pavlu Dagmar, Arnal-Gómez Anna
Department of Physiotherapy, Faculty of Physiotherapy, University of Valencia, Gascó Oliag St, 5, 46010 Valencia, Spain.
Department of Physiotherapy, Faculty of Health Science, Universidad Europea de Valencia, Pg. de l'Albereda, 7, El Pla del Real, 46010 Valencia, Spain.
Healthcare (Basel). 2025 Jul 4;13(13):1610. doi: 10.3390/healthcare13131610.
: In the context of active ageing, functional assessment is key to preserving autonomy in older women. The six-minute walk test (6MWT) is a practical tool for estimating general health, but its results can be influenced by various factors. This study analysed cardiorespiratory variations during the 6MWT in older women according to their physical activity level and age-related variables such as pain, sarcopenia, frailty, and motivation to exercise. : A total of 163 older women with musculoskeletal pain, but without cardiac or respiratory conditions, were classified into groups with high (HPA), moderate (MPA), and low (LPA) physical activity. During the 6MWT, heart rate (HR), dyspnoea, and oxygen saturation (SpO) were recorded. Pain, sarcopenia, frailty, and motivation to exercise were also assessed. A repeated-measures multivariate analysis of (co)variance (RM-MANCOVA) was performed. : The results showed differences in HR depending on the level of physical activity, conditioned by sarcopenia ( < 0.05) and walked distance ( < 0.001), and in dyspnoea conditioned by pain perception ( < 0.01) and social ( < 0.001) and psychological ( < 0.05) motivation to exercise. There were also differences in SpO depending on the level of physical activity ( < 0.0001). There were differences between the HPA group and both the MPA and LPA group, which had higher HR, higher dyspnoea, and lower SpO when undergoing the 6MWT test. : To accurately interpret 6MWT results in older adult women, it is essential to consider physical activity level, perceived pain, sarcopenia, and motivation to exercise, as these factors influence HR, dyspnoea, and SpO. These variables should guide physical activity recommendations for healthy ageing.
在积极老龄化的背景下，功能评估是维持老年女性自主性的关键。六分钟步行试验（6MWT）是评估总体健康状况的实用工具，但其结果可能受到多种因素影响。本研究根据老年女性的身体活动水平以及与年龄相关的变量（如疼痛、肌肉减少症、衰弱和运动动机）分析了她们在6MWT期间的心肺变化。
共有163名患有肌肉骨骼疼痛但无心脏或呼吸疾病的老年女性被分为高身体活动水平（HPA）组、中等身体活动水平（MPA）组和低身体活动水平（LPA）组。在6MWT期间，记录心率（HR）、呼吸困难程度和血氧饱和度（SpO）。同时还评估了疼痛、肌肉减少症、衰弱和运动动机。进行了重复测量多变量协方差分析（RM-MANCOVA）。
结果显示，心率因身体活动水平不同而存在差异，受肌肉减少症（P<0.05）和步行距离（P<0.001）影响；呼吸困难程度受疼痛感知（P<0.01）、社交（P<0.001）和心理（P<0.05）运动动机影响。血氧饱和度也因身体活动水平不同而存在差异（P<0.0001）。HPA组与MPA组和LPA组之间存在差异，后两组在进行6MWT测试时心率更高、呼吸困难更严重且血氧饱和度更低。
为准确解读老年女性的6MWT结果，必须考虑身体活动水平、感知疼痛、肌肉减少症和运动动机，因为这些因素会影响心率、呼吸困难程度和血氧饱和度。这些变量应指导健康老龄化的身体活动建议。
