There have not been any new updates regarding the 6-minute walk test norms since last year. However, there have been new studies published that indicate it is a valid test for the pediatric population. Also, I was not able to find any normative values for the 3 minute walk test in the pediatric or adult population.
Citation of Article:
Den boer SL, Flipse DH, Van der meulen MH, et al. Six-Minute Walk Test as a Predictor for Outcome in Children with Dilated Cardiomyopathy and Chronic Stable Heart Failure. Pediatr Cardiol. 2016
Article Summary:
The purpose of the article was to see if the 6 minute walk test could be a predictive outcome in children with dilated cardiomyopathy. There were 49 participants with dilated cardiomyopathy who were 6 years and older who performed the 6 minute walk test. The patients were instructed to walk back and forth on an 8 m track at a self-chosen speed. The objective was to walk as far as possible with no running during a 6 minute time period. The researched converted the 6 minute walk distance to a percentage using the age and gender specific normal values. By using a univariable Cox regression analysis, the researchers determined a higher 6MWD% resulted in a lower risk of death or transplantation. They determined patients with a 6MWD% less than 63% had a 2 year transplant free survival of 73%. If the patient had a percentage greater than or equal to 63%, their transplant free survival rate was 92%.
Some strengths of this article were that the participants were of various ages between 7 and 15 so it represented almost half of the pediatric age range. All participants with a cardiomyopathy could be included and no single diagnosis was excluded except for if they had a structural heart defect or neuromuscular disease. Some weaknesses of this article were that it was a small samples size but given the population in the Netherlands with this diagnosis, it was a good percentage (88%). The researchers used an 8 m track instead of a 30 m track, which is recommended by the American Thoracic Society guidelines. Therefore due to the small track size, the participants had to make more turns during the walk, which may have skewed the results. The study was conducted at seven different centers so the consistency of the way the tests was administered may have been different per participant. In conclusion, children with a dilated cardiomyopathy, the 6 minute walk test is a good predictor to identify children with a higher risk of death or heart transplantation.