@article {1393, title = {Heart rate response to a timed walk and cardiovascular outcomes in older adults: the cardiovascular health study.}, journal = {Cardiology}, volume = {122}, year = {2012}, month = {2012}, pages = {69-75}, abstract = {

OBJECTIVES: To determine the relationship between heart rate response during low-grade physical exertion (6-min walk) with mortality and adverse cardiovascular outcomes in the elderly.

METHODS: Participants in the Cardiovascular Health Study who completed a 6-min walk test were included. We used delta heart rate (difference between postwalk heart rate and resting heart rate) as a measure of chronotropic response and examined its association with (1) all-cause mortality and (2) incident coronary heart disease event, using multivariable Cox regression models.

RESULTS: We included 2,224 participants (mean age 77 {\textpm} 4 years; 60\% women; 85\% white). The average delta heart rate was 26 beats/min. Participants in the lowest tertile of delta heart rate (<20 beats/min) had higher risk-adjusted mortality [hazard ratio (HR) 1.18, 95\% confidence interval (CI) 1.00-1.40] and incident coronary heart disease (HR 1.37, 95\% CI 1.05-1.78) compared to subjects in the highest tertile (>=30 beats/min), with a significant linear trend across tertiles (p for trend <0.05 for both outcomes). This relationship was not significant after adjustment for distance walked.

CONCLUSION: Impaired chronotropic response during a 6-min walk test was associated with an increased risk of mortality and incident coronary heart disease among the elderly. This association was attenuated after adjusting for distance walked.

}, keywords = {Aged, Cause of Death, Coronary Disease, Exercise Test, Female, Heart Rate, Humans, Male, Physical Exertion, Prognosis, Prospective Studies, Risk Factors, Time Factors, Walking}, issn = {1421-9751}, doi = {10.1159/000338736}, author = {Girotra, Saket and Kitzman, Dalane W and Kop, Willem J and Stein, Phyllis K and Gottdiener, John S and Mukamal, Kenneth J} }