Strapart J.1
1Erasmus Hospital, Physiotherapy, Brussels, Belgium
Background: The peripheral arterial disease (PAD) or intermittent claudication (IC) is the most common clinical symptom of lower extremity peripheral arterial disease. This results in a reduction in functional capacity and morbidity and cardiovascular mortality. The treatment for IC is a supervised exercise training program by a physiotherapist. To evaluate the functional limitations, the physiotherapist uses the Strandness test (graded treadmill walking test validated in scientific literature). But it requires equipment, space and time. Do the test with a stool would be more practical?
Purpose: Our study aims to validate Stool test (StoT) by comparing the Strandness test (StrT). And see if the StoT is faster than the StrT, therefore more practical for the physiotherapist.
Methods: The study population consisted of 17 patients with IC. We conducted in each, one StrT and one StoT. The StrT consists of walking on a treadmill at a speed of 3,2 km/h and 10% slope to the onset of pain. The StoT is going up and down the first step of a stool repeatedly and as quickly as possible until the onset of pain. We measured not only perfusion pressures and by deducting the ABI before exercise, after and recovery but also distances or cycles (up and down) and times of discomfort and pain.
Results: Our results show that our patients have a initial claudication distance of 93.6 ± 50.1 meters and a total walking distance of 206.5 ± 142.5 meters on the treadmill. The ABI is changing from 0.69 ± 0.18 in rest to 0.33 ± 0.17 after the test. For the StoT, patients realize 28.4 ± 21.4 cycles before feeling discomfort but still manage to achieve 51.1 ± 41.8 cycles before stopping. The ABI is changing from 0.70 ± 0.22 in rest to 0.41 ± 0.26 after the test. Other variables show no correlation.
Conclusion(s): The values of the ABI changes in the same way between the StrT and the StoT. Both tests leading to the same vascular effects, the physiotherapist will use the StoT because more convenient (less space and less expensive) and faster to induce intermittent claudication. However, distances or cycles and times recorded during exercise showed no correlation between the two tests. The physiotherapist will not be able to use the StoT to evaluate functional capacity in a patient with IC. Therefore, he will use the StrT to evaluate a patient with PAD before and after supervised exercise training program.
Implications: How to evaluate a patient with intermittent claudication in everyday practice of the physiotherapist
Funding acknowledgements: The Strandness test is the best test for patient with intermittent claudication
Topic: Cardiorespiratory
Ethics approval: The ethics committee of the Erasmus Hospital in Belgium
All authors, affiliations and abstracts have been published as submitted.
