Validation of a Cardiopulmonary Exercise Test Score in Heart Failure

Abstract

Background—: Cardiopulmonary exercise test (CPX) responses are strong predictors of outcomes in patients with heart failure. We recently developed a CPX score that integrated the additive prognostic information from CPX. The purpose of this study was to validate the score in a larger, independent sample of patients. Methods and Results—: A total of 2625 patients with heart failure underwent CPX and were followed for cardiovascular (CV) mortality and major CV events (death, transplantation, left ventricular assist device implantation). Net reclassification improvement (NRI) for the score and each of its components were determined at 3 years. The VE/VCO ₂ slope was the strongest predictor of risk and was attributed a relative weight of 7, with weighted scores for abnormal heart rate recovery, oxygen uptake efficiency slope, end-tidal CO ₂ pressure, and peak VO ₂ having scores of 5, 3, 3, and 2, respectively. A summed score of >15 was associated with an annual mortality rate of 12.2% and a relative risk >9 for total events, whereas a score of 2 (category-free NRI, 0.61–0.77), and the score provided significant NRI above clinical risk factors for both CV events and mortality (NRI, 0.63 and 0.65 for CPX score compared with clinical variables alone). Conclusions—: These results validate the application of a simple, integrated multivariable score based on readily available CPX responses.