Chest ACCP Career Connection
HOME HELP FEEDBACK SUBSCRIPTIONS ARCHIVE SEARCH TABLE OF CONTENTS
QUICK SEARCH:   [advanced]


     

Guest Access | Sign In via User Name/Password
This Article
Right arrow Full Text (PDF) Free
Right arrow Submit a response
Right arrow Alert me when this article is cited
Right arrow Alert me when eLetters are posted
Right arrow Alert me if a correction is posted
Services
Right arrow Email this article to a friend
Right arrow Similar articles in this journal
Right arrow Similar articles in PubMed
Right arrow Alert me to new issues of the journal
Right arrow Add to My Personal Article Archive
Right arrow Download to citation manager
Right arrow reprints & permissions
Citing Articles
Right arrow Citing Articles via HighWire
Right arrow Citing Articles via Google Scholar
Google Scholar
Right arrow Articles by Schwaiblmair, M.
Right arrow Articles by Fruhmann, G.
Right arrow Search for Related Content
PubMed
Right arrow PubMed Citation
Right arrow Articles by Schwaiblmair, M.
Right arrow Articles by Fruhmann, G.
(Chest. 1996;110:1520-1525.)
© 1996 American College of Chest Physicians

Cardiorespiratory Responses to Incremental Exercise in Patients With Systemic Sclerosis

Martin Schwaiblmair MD1; Jürgen Behr MD1; and Günter Fruhmann MD, FCCP1

1 From the Abteilung für Pneumologie, Medizinische Klinik I, Klinikum Groβhadern, University of Munich, Munich, Germany

Patients with systemic sclerosis are known to have histologic pulmonary abnormalities despite normal chest radiograph or conventional pulmonary function or both. In an attempt to detect early features of lung involvement in progressive systemic sclerosis, we investigated patients with systemic sclerosis using cardiopulmonary exercise testing. We have studied 78 patients who fulfilled the American Rheumatism Association criteria for the classification of systemic sclerosis, and according to the classification of LeRoy, 44 had limited cutaneous systemic sclerosis and 34 had diffuse cutaneous systemic sclerosis. A significantly decreased diffusing capacity (65±3% of that predicted) was present only in the group with diffuse cutaneous systemic sclerosis. The patients with lung involvement showed a significant reduction in exercise capacity (54±3% of that predicted) and in oxygen uptake (70±3% of that predicted). Additionally, we could demonstrate an increased functional dead space ventilation (0.34±0.02) and widened alveolar-arterial oxygen difference during exercise (44±3 mm Hg). By cardiopulmonary exercise testing, 12 of the 78 patients (15%) with normal single-breath diffusing capacity for carbon monoxide had increased dead space to tidal volume ratio. Our results suggest that occult pulmonary impairment may be present in patients with normal pulmonary function and that cardiopulmonary exercise testing enables detection of such impairment. Our study results show the limitations of resting data in predicting abnormalities during exercise in patients with systemic sclerosis.

Key Words: cardiopulmonary exercise testing • gas exchange • lung fibrosis • systemic sclerosis

Submitted on October 20, 1995
Accepted on July 10, 1996




This article has been cited by other articles:


Home page
 Eur Respir JHome page
C. Lamblin, C. Bergoin, T. Saelens, and B. Wallaert
Interstitial lung diseases in collagen vascular diseases
Eur. Respir. J., July 1, 2001; 18(32_suppl): 69S - 80s.
[Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]


HOME HELP FEEDBACK SUBSCRIPTIONS ARCHIVE SEARCH TABLE OF CONTENTS
Copyright © 1996 by the American College of Chest Physicians.