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Abstract

6 Minutes walking test: from traditional methods
to self-adaptive treadmill with scx technology

published in July - August 2020 - in Il Fisioterapista - issue n.4
Andrea Ceresoli

The 6-minute walking test (6MWT) measures the distance covered by a person walking as quickly as possible on a flat surface for 6 minutes, including all the pauses/interruptions that the person considers necessary. The primary purpose of the 6MWT is to assess exercise tolerance in patients suffering from chronic respiratory diseases and heart failure. Secondly, it is also used to measure functional capacity in the elderly, and in those classified as part of a “special population”. It is not always possible to find a long enough linear space for the test, which is why the 6MWT is very often performed using the capacity of a conveyor belt as in the treadmill.
The limitation in carrying out such a test on the treadmill is that the person will hardly be able to vary his travel speed as he would in the “field test”, thus presenting a strong limit given by the constant speed of the treadmill. This article describes the new SCX (Speed Control X) technology on the treadmill applied to the 6MWT that allow an automatic adaptation to the user’s speed.