The role of exercise stress testing in pediatric patients with heart disease

Exercise testing is a valuable tool in the management of pediatric patients with heart disease. It can be used to help determine the need for medical or surgical interventions and can be used to determine the efficacy of these interventions. Common settings in which exercise testing may be helpful include evaluation of exercise tolerance in repaired or unrepaired congenital heart disease, assessment of heart failure symptoms, diagnosis and management of dysrhythmias, determination of cardiac, as opposed to respiratory causes of chest pain and prescription of exercise rehabilitation programs. This manuscript will review the indications, techniques, and uses of exercise stress testing in the pediatric population with an emphasis on the development of the exercise physiology lab as a source of high-quality data that can be used to improve patient outcomes.