Assessing fitness for surgery: a comparison of questionnaire, incremental shuttle walk, and cardiopulmonary exercise testing in general surgical patientsâ€

We found a significant correlation between the tests. However, many patients with poor questionnaire scores or shuttle walks had satisfactory CPET results. Hence, the ability of either simple test to determine risk in a heterogeneous surgical population is poor. CPET provides an objective measurement of cardiopulmonary fitness; however, evidence for this information improving patient outcome is limited and requires further research.