Eficiência Ventilatória na comparação dos Testes de Exercício Máximo Incremental e Supramáximo Constante

Abstract

Ventilatory efficiency (VE) is measured through the level of minute ventilation related to CO2 removal during cardiopulmonary exercise testing (CPET). A new method was developed to measure EV (ƞ⩒E - CO2CR), presumably insensitive to ventilatory restrictions, which may reveal different patterns among athletes, in correspondence with aerobic fitness. Thus, the objective of the study was to analyze the ventilatory efficiency obtained in the incremental and supramaximal tests in physically active individuals. This was an observational, cross-sectional retrospective study, based on secondary data with the usual variables ⩒E/⩒CO2 nadir, slope and intercept and the new method ŋ⩒'E through the incremental and supramaximal test. The study consisted of 27 athletes, from the Medalha project, who were selected in a non-probabilistic way and for convenience, who performed both a supramaximal test and an incremental test, totaling 54 tests. The V'E/VCO2 slope, intercept and nadir rate, ƞ⩒E and CO2CR were the variables analyzed in the study. As for demographic variables, 89% of individuals were male and the mean age was 36.3±8.1 years. Regarding the EV index, greater significance was identified in the ⩒E/⩒CO2 slope rate (p<0.001), ⩒E/⩒CO2 intercept (p=0.007), ⩒E/⩒CO2 nadir ( p<0.001), CO2CR removal rate (p<0.001), as well as ƞ⩒E (p<0.001). With this, it is concluded that the present study demonstrated in an unprecedented way that ventilatory efficiency presented a higher CO2 removal rate, and a more significant ventilatory efficiency in relation to the supramaximal verification test compared to the incremental test.