RESUMEN
Firefighting is a dangerous occupation and even training carries substantial risks. Self-contained breathing apparatus confidence courses (SCBACC) are a common type of training. PURPOSE: Compare the physiological strain of SCBACC to live-fire training (LFT) and circuit training (CT) among academy cadets. METHODS: Cadets wore physiologic status monitors to assess heart rate (HR) and estimated core temperature (ECT) during CT, LFT, and SCBACC of similar duration (33-38â¯min). RESULTS: Data from 52 cadet firefighters (28⯱â¯4â¯yrs old) were analyzed. ECT (38.6⯱â¯0.4 vs 39.3⯱â¯0.7 vs. 39.3⯱â¯0.6áµC), peak HR (182.6⯱â¯9.1 vs. 192.7⯱â¯9.5 vs 195.9⯱â¯9.6 bpm), and age-predicted maximal HR (APMHR%; 94.6⯱â¯4.6 vs 99.9⯱â¯4.9 vs. 101.5⯱â¯4.8%) were significantly (pâ¯<â¯0.05) lower for CT than SCBACC and LFT, respectively. CONCLUSIONS: SCBACC produced physiological strain greater than CT and similar to LFT. SCBACC resulted in sustained HR at 100% of age-predicted maximal values, a peak ECT of 39.3⯰C, and should be considered as physiologically stressful as LFT.