Maximal aerobic capacity and the oxygen uptake efficiency slope as predictors of large artery stiffness in apparently healthy subjects.

PURPOSE: Large artery stiffness is now recognized as an important marker of cardiovascular health. The purpose of the present investigation was to assess the relationship between large artery stiffness and the oxygen uptake efficiency slope (OUES) and to determine whether the OUES is a viable surrogate for maximal oxygen uptake (VO(2max)) in a multivariate regression analysis developed to estimate large artery stiffness. METHODS: Two hundred seventy-five apparently healthy subjects (149 men; age = 48.1 +/- 15.8 years/126 women; age = 47.0 +/- 15.3 years) participated in this study. Subjects underwent maximal cardiopulmonary exercise testing to determine VO(2max) and the OUES. The OUES was calculated using 50% and 100% of the exercise data. Measurement of aortic wave velocity (AWV in meters/second) was obtained via magnetic resonance imaging. RESULTS: Pearson product-moment correlation analysis revealed that VO(2max) (r = -0.49, P < .001), the OUES calculation using 50% of exercise data (r = -0.25, P < .001), and the OUES calculation using 100% of exercise data (r = -0.34, P < .001) were all significantly related to AWV. However, only VO(2max) was retained in a linear regression (also including age and resting systolic blood pressure) used to predict AWV. DISCUSSION: Previous research has demonstrated a relationship between VO(2max) and AWV, which was also found in the present study. While the OUES was significantly correlated with AWV, it does not appear to be an adequate replacement for VO(2max) when attempting to gauge large artery compliance.