La Fe participates in the validation of a model to assess cardiopulmonary fitness in children and adolescents

Hospital Universitari i Politècnic La Fe and its Health Research Institute (IIS La Fe) have taken part in the validation of a more accurate model to assess cardiopulmonary fitness in children and adolescents under 18. The model is intended to help interpret exercise tests and to support clinical follow-up, exercise prescription and rehabilitation programs.

The model is based on the Z-score, a statistical tool that compares each child's results with the values expected for children with similar characteristics. It was developed from a published international reference population and validated with data from more than 1,000 healthy Spanish participants, in collaboration with Hospital Universitario Donostia and Hospital Universitario Virgen del Rocío (Seville).

The results show that the Z-score model is more precise and consistent than the traditional equations used since the 1980s, especially in children and adolescents with overweight, as it reduces the influence of body weight on the results. The study has been published in Revista Española de Cardiología.

In clinical practice, this approach can help identify children with low aerobic capacity, monitor pediatric patients with chronic diseases, adjust exercise intensity and evaluate progress after rehabilitation or lifestyle interventions.

The study is part of the European QUALIREHAB project, a hybrid cardiac rehabilitation program with partners in France, Germany, the United States and Spain. It has been funded by the Consejo Superior de Deportes and by the European "Innovate to Prevent" call (JTC-THCS 2024), and is registered on ClinicalTrials.gov (NCT04876209).