Principal Investigator(s)
Investigator(s)
Study Location
Significance of the Problem
Specific Aims and Objectives

Larry F. Hamm, PhD

Suzanne Groah, MD, MPH
Pei-Shu Ho, PhD

National Rehabilitation Hospital

Significance of the Problem

The estimated prevalence of spinal cord injury (SCI) in the United States is in excess of 200,000 persons with approximately 10,000 new cases annually.¹Of these total injuries, nearly 20% result in paraplegia with a motor incomplete injury. Quantifying the aerobic capacity of a person with SCI is often helpful for physicians and therapists in determining when specific therapies or activities are appropriate for individuals.²Hence, the measurement of cardiorespiratory capacity by exercise testing persons with SCI provides valuable clinical data.

Additionally, persons with SCI frequently have very low measures of cardiorespiratory fitness ^3,4 and peak fitness has been reported to be less than 15 mL·kg ^-1·min^-1.⁵The extent to which the SCI itself and the mode of exercise testing affects measured cardiorespiratory fitness is not well understood.

Specific Aims and Objectives

This study will compare peak VO₂ values and other selected physiological responses to exercise during all 3 modes of exercise testing in order to determine which mode of testing elicits the highest values.

The proposed study is designed to address the following research questions:

Question 1. Are there significant differences in peak physiological responses between the 3 modes of exercise testing?

Question 2. Which of the 3 modes of exercise testing (treadmill, cycle ergometer, and arm ergometer) elicit the highest measure of aerobic capacity (VO_2peak)?