Incremental Shuttle Walk Test Procedures for a Person Who Is Blind

Nicky Baker, Michael Taggart, Winifred Taylor, Susan Jayne Gordon

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

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Abstract

Graded cardiopulmonary exercise tests are necessary in clinical and research settings to calculate exercise capacity, determine exercise tolerance, and inform exercise prescription (Lima et al., 2019). Although laboratory assessments using a treadmill or cycle ergometer to measure VO2max and ventilatory threshold are considered the gold standard, they require dedicated equipment, space, and trained personnel to administer, and are therefore expensive (Beltz et al., 2016). For graded physical capacity testing in the community, tests need to be accessible, inexpensive, portable, and easily administered. Walking tests are therefore desirable for measuring cardiopulmonary capacity in the community, the most common being either the six-minute walk test (Enright, 2003) or the incremental shuttle walk test (ISWT) (Singh et al., 2008). The former is a self-paced measure of endurance and, therefore, may not produce a maximal effort, whereas the ISWT is externally paced via audible cues, producing a maximal effort (Singh et al., 2008). This test is validated in adults (Parreira et al., 2014) as well as children and adolescents (de Cordoba Lanza et al., 2015). It is performed by walking shuttles of a 10-meter track in response to pre-recorded beeps. The participants begin walking, performing one shuttle (10 m) at 0.50 m/s per beep. Each minute, the speed of walking increases, up to 2.37 m/s. The test ends when the participant fails to reach the turnaround cone before the next beep, becomes too fatigued, or completes the entire test (Lima et al., 2019).
Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)57-61
Number of pages5
JournalJournal of Visual Impairment and Blindness
Volume118
Issue number1
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 11 Feb 2024

Keywords

  • blindness
  • incremental shuttle walk test
  • visual impairment

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