No abstract

Objectives-(1) To design a submaximal arm ergometry test (6-minute arm test ), for individuals with spinal cord injury (SCI) and (2) to determine the test-retest reliability and concurrent validity of this test.Design-Prospective, exploratory, methodological study. To determine test-retest reliability, subjects completed the 6-MAT on 2 days, separated by 1 week. Validity was determined by comparing 6-MAT results with VO 2 peak. Setting-Tertiary rehabilitation center.Participants-30 subjects with SCI (mean age=36.3 years; 83% male). Intervention-Not applicable.Main Outcome Measures-Subjects were evaluated on the 6-MAT and a VO 2 peak test.Results-All subjects were able to complete the 6-MAT. Test-retest reliability of steady state VO 2 and heart rate (HR) during the 6-MAT were excellent; intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC)=0.81 [95% confidence interval (CI)=0.58-0.92], and 0.90 (95%CI=0.75-0.96), respectively. The correlation between VO 2 peak and 6-MAT VO 2 was excellent (r=0.92), while those between VO 2 peak and 6-MAT HR (r=0.63) and VO 2 peak and 6-MAT power output (PO) (r=0.73) were good.Conclusions-This study demonstrated that the 6-MAT has acceptable values for test-retest reliability and validity. The 6-MAT should be further tested for responsiveness to enhance its use as a clinical tool.