Análise da velocidade de marcha de pessoas com doença pulmonar obstrutiva crônica e pessoas com insuficiência cardíaca crônica através do teste 4-metre gait speed

Abstract

People with chronic diseases such as Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) and Chronic Heart Failure (CHF) often have physical and functional impairments that are associated with a worse prognosis, such as decreased gait speed. However, it is not known whether gait speed impairment is similar between COPD and CHF. The aim of this study was to analyze the gait speed of individuals with COPD and individuals with HF using the 4-Metre Gait Speed (4MGS) test. This is a cross-sectional study that used baseline data from two larger prospective studies that included patients diagnosed with COPD or CHF who were clinically stable and did not have health conditions that could compromise or confound the results of the assessments. Sociodemographic, anthropometric (e.g., body mass index - BMI) and clinical (e.g., forced expiratory volume in 1 second - FEV1, ejection fraction - EF) data were collected, as well as usual gait speed through the 4MGS physical function test, and compared to reference values. The study included 190 patients, 99 with COPD (54% women, age 71±9 years, BMI 25.53±6.44 kg/m2) and 91 with CHF (53% women, age 60±15 years, BMI 27.85±4.92 kg/m2). There were no differences in measured gait speed between groups (p=0.486), but when compared with predicted, values were better in COPD (1.03 vs. 0.97 m/s; p=0.009). Age, height, weight, BMI, FEV1 and EF showed significant correlations with gait speed, varying between groups. Based on this, it is concluded that the study revealed that measured gait speed did not differ significantly between individuals with COPD and HF, although predicted values were better in COPD. Furthermore, significant correlations between clinical variables and gait speed highlight their relevance in the functional assessment of these groups.