Association Between the 6-Min Walk Test and Cardiopulmonary Exercise Testing Parameters in Subacute Cerebral Infarction

Figure 1. Flow diagram of participant selection. A total of 184 patients were initially screened for eligibility. Following the exclusion process, 122 participants were included in the final analysis. Abbreviations: COPD = chronic obstructive pulmonary disease; CPET = cardiopulmonary exercise testing.

Figure 2. Distribution of CPET VO2peak across Weber classification categories. The solid line indicates the threshold required for independent living (15 mL·kg−1·min−1). Overall, 52.4% (64/122) of participants demonstrated VO2peak values below 15 mL·kg−1·min−1. Abbreviations: CPET = cardiopulmonary exercise testing; VO2peak = peak oxygen uptake.

Figure 3. Subgroup analysis of the association between 6MWD and VO2peak. Forest plot showing the unadjusted standardized regression coefficients (β) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) for the association between 6-min walk distance (6MWD) and peak oxygen uptake (VO2peak) across clinical subgroups of patients with subacute cerebral infarction. Simple linear regression was performed within each subgroup, with 6MWD as the independent variable and VO2peak as the dependent variable. No covariate adjustment was performed due to the limited sample sizes in some subgroups. The vertical line at β = 0 indicates no association. Abbreviations: BMI, body mass index; FAC, Functional Ambulation Category.

Figure 4. The scatter plots illustrate the associations between CPET HRpeak and 6MWT-derived variables. The blue solid line represents the fitted trend line, and the grey shaded regions represent the 95% confidence interval bands. Abbreviations: CPET HRpeak = peak heart rate during cardiopulmonary exercise testing; 6MWT HRpeak = peak heart rate during the 6-min walk test; 6MWD = distance covered during the 6-min walk test; Borg RPE score = Borg Rating of Perceived Exertion score.