ORIGINAL ARTICLES  PHYSIOLOGY AND BIOMECHANICS 

The Journal of Sports Medicine and Physical Fitness 2010 September;50(3):274-80

Copyright © 2010 EDIZIONI MINERVA MEDICA

lingua: Inglese

Estimation of peak oxygen uptake from maximal power output among 9-10 year-old children in Lhasa, Tibet

Bianba B. ^{1, 2}, Berntsen S. ^{3, 4}, Andersen L. B. ^{4, 5}, Stigum H. ^{2, 6}, Bjertness E. ^{1, 2} ✉

¹ Tibet University Medical College, Lhasa, Tibet, China; ² Institute of General Practice and Community Medicine, University of Oslo, Oslo, Norway; ³ Department of General Pediatrics, Woman-Child Division, Ullevål University Hospital, Oslo, Norway; ⁴ Department of Sports Medicine, Norwegian School of Sport Sciences, Oslo, Norway; ⁵ Center for Research in Childhood Health, Institute of Sport Sciences and Clinical Biomechanics, University of Southern Denmark, Odense, Denmark; ⁶ Norwegian Institute of Public Health, Oslo, Norway

AIM: The aims of the present study of Tibetan and Han Chinese children were to establish prediction equations for peak oxygen uptake (V.O2peak) using conventional power output measures, and to compare with prediction models based on data from sea level.
METHODS: In 25 Tibetan children and 15 Han Chinese children aged 9-10 years, living in Lhasa at 3700 meters above sea level, V.O2peak was measured directly using a portable oxygen analyzer, and predicted from maximal power output (Wmax) using a maximal cycle ergometer test.
RESULTS: In multiple regression analyses with V.O2peak as dependent variable and Wmax and sex as covariates, a total adjusted R2 of 0.76 and 0.82 were found in Tibetan and Han Chinese children, separately. Sex made a unique, and statistically significant, contribution to the prediction of V.O2peak. Three equations derived from sea level data were compared with the equations from the present study. None of the three could accurately predict the direct measured V.O2peak, and predictions differed in an unsystematic manner, including over- or underestimation and no differentiation between genders.
CONCLUSION: Peak oxygen uptake could be estimated from Wmax and sex in a progressive cycle ergometer test among children living at 3700 meters in Tibet. The estimate of V.O2peak is probably more valid using the present equations than prediction models based on data from sea level. The equations used for the prediction are:
BianbaeqT: (l·min-1) = 0.5419 + (0.0096· Wmax) - (0.0562· sex); boys=0; girls=1
BianbaeqH: (l·min-1) = 0.4060 + (0.0124· Wmax) - (0.1775· sex); boys=0; girls=1