The validation of the sit-to-stand test for COPD patients

We read with interest the publication by Crook et al. [1] on the validation and responsive properties of the 1-min sit-to-stand (STS) test in patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) undergoing pulmonary rehabilitation. The authors performed a comprehensive evaluation of the minimal clinical meaningful difference of the 1-min STS test. In our own dataset of patients from a multicentre study, this STS test exhibited similar level of reliability, intra-subject repeatability [2], and responsiveness to pulmonary rehabilitation with an estimated minimal important difference (MID) of three repetitions [3]. In their study, Crook et al. [1] emphasised the change in STS repetitions, which is better related to change in subjective outcomes (feeling thermometer notably), rather than with physical capacity outcomes such as the 6-min walk distance (6MWD). It is, after all, largely accepted that health-related quality of life (HRQoL) tools are the most sensitive in pulmonary rehabilitation, given the multimodal and patient-tailored interventions addressed in order to optimise benefits, not only focused on exercise training, but also on change in education and behaviour [4].

Source: European Respiratory Journal - September 20, 2017 Category: Respiratory Medicine Authors: Chambellan, A., Nusinovici, S., Vaidya, T., Gourraud, P.-A., de Bisschop, C. Tags: COPD and smoking Original Articles: Correspondence Source Type: research