Long-term stability of the oxygen pulse curve during maximal exercise

INTRODUCTION: Exercise oxygen pulse (O2 pulse), a surrogate for stroke volume and arteriovenous oxygen difference, has emerged as an important variable obtained during cardiopulmonary exercise testing. OBJECTIVES: We hypothesized that the O2 pulse curve pattern response to a maximal cycling ramp protocol exhibits a stable linear pattern in subjects reevaluated under the same clinical conditions. METHODS: We retrospectively studied 100 adults (80 males), mean age at baseline of 59 + 12 years, who performed two cardiopulmonary exercise testings (median interval was 15 months), for clinical and/o...

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