Cardiopulmonary Exercise Test Using Arm Ergometry in Children With Spina Bifida: A Prediction Model for (V) over dotO(2peak): A Prediction Model for VO _2peak

Purpose: This study aimed to develop a prediction model for peak oxygen uptake (O _2peak ) in children with spina bifida (SB), considering peak workload (W _peak ), peak heart rate, age, sex, anthropometric measures, walking level, physical activity level, and level of the lesion. Methods: Data of 26 participants with SB performing a graded arm crank test were used to develop the prediction model. An unrelated data set of participants with SB was used for validation. Results: The following equation was developed to predict O _2peak of participants with SB: O _2peak (mL/min) = 194+18 × W _peak -110 × sex (adjusted R ² = 0.933, SEE = 96 mL/min). Bland-Altman analysis showed a nonsignificant mean difference between the measured and predicted values of O _2peak (-0.09 L/min) and limits of agreement of-0.4036 and 0.2236 L/min. Conclusions: The prediction model shows promising results; however, further validation using the same protocol is warranted before implementation in clinical practice.