Effects of an exercise program in children with cystic fibrosis: are there differences between females and males?

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the adaptive responses of an in-patient exercise program in children with cystic fibrosis (CF) and evaluate the effects of sex. STUDY DESIGN: In total, 158 female and 186 male subjects with CF (age, 12 to 43 years) were studied during a 6-week rehabilitation course. A maximal incremental cycling test was used to determine exercise capacity and responses after 6 weeks of exercise training. Measures included lung function, peak oxygen uptake, peak workload, and peak heart rate. RESULTS: Lung function values were lower in males (P < .05). Females had a lower aerobic capacity (P < .05) at the beginning and at the end of the exercise training program. Similar training effects (P > .05) were seen between sexes in peak oxygen uptake (mL/min, mL/kg/min) and peak heart rate (beats/min) but not in peak workload (Watts, W/kg). CONCLUSIONS: The exercise program improved the fitness level similarly in females and males with CF. Basic physiological sex differences were still seen at the beginning and end of the training, despite the better lung function in females. Moreover, the finding suggested that fitness level and not lung function determined the response to training in CF, with those who were less fit at baseline having the largest response to training.

Motor performance is better than normal in preschool children with cystic fibrosis.

The aim of the present study was to assess the motor performance in preschool children with a reliable and valid test battery developed to identify motor dysfunction and normal motor development in children aged from 4 to 6 years. Several aspects of motor performance were examined in 29 preschool children with cystic fibrosis (CF) age range 4-6 years (mean 5.2 +/- 0.8 years), FEV(1) 97.2 +/- 15.3pred and compared to with 22 healthy children of the same age 5.5 +/- 0.8 years. All children performed the "Motoriktest fuer 4-6jaehrige Kinder" (MOT) assessing seven different aspects of motor performance. Compared to healthy children, test score "Motor Quotient" (MQ) as the mean of all test items was significantly higher (P < 0.05) in children with CF (108.1 +/- 16 vs. 93.5 +/- 17.9). In both groups, the MQ can be classified as normal. Children with CF scored higher in MOT subtests "Agility and Coordination" (P < 0.05) and "Balance" (P < 0.01) than healthy children but not in the other subtests. We speculate that chest physiotherapy in preschool children with CF may have an effect on motor performance in general and in some aspects of motor performance.