Volume 3, Number 3, December 2006

Exercise capacity is a predictor of cardiovascular events in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus
Berhane Seyoum, Raymond O Estacio, Paulos Berhanu, Robert W Schrier

Peak exercise oxygen consumption (peak VO2), as measured by expired gas analysis, is an accurate, reproducible and reliable method for determining exercise capacity. In this study, a cohort of 468 patients with type 2 diabetes underwent graded exercise testing to measure peak VO₂ at baseline; the cohort was followed for five years for the occurrence of cardiovascular disease (CVD) events. Patients who developed CVD events during the five-year follow-up period were found to have significantly lower baseline peak VO₂, as compared to those who did not (p=0.02). Analysis by gender showed that the mean peak VO₂ in male patients who developed CVD events was significantly lower than the peak VO₂ in those who did not (p<0.03). Multiple Cox regression analysis also showed low peak VO₂ to be an independent factor.
In conclusion, patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus with reduced peak VO₂ during exercise have a greater tendency to develop future CVD events.

Diabetes Vasc Dis Res 2006;3:197-201.

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