European journal of applied physiology
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Eur. J. Appl. Physiol. · Mar 2012
Clinical TrialOxygen uptake efficiency plateau: physiology and reference values.
The relationship of oxygen uptake [Formula: see text] to ventilation [Formula: see text], i.e., oxygen uptake efficiency (OUE) is known to differ between normal subjects and patients with congestive heart failure. However, only the oxygen uptake efficiency slope (OUES, i.e., slope of [Formula: see text] has previously been reported. To understand the physiology and to improve the usefulness of OUE in assessing cardiovascular function, we analyzed the complete response pattern of OUE during entire incremental exercise tests and ascertained effect of age, body size, gender, fitness, and ergometer type on exercise OUE to generate reference values in normal healthy subjects. ⋯ Extreme fitness has a minimal effect on OUEP. OUEP is advantageous, since it measures maximal oxygen extraction from ventilated air but does not require high intensity exercise. The OUEP is a non-invasive parameter dependent only on age, gender, height, and cardiovascular health.