The correlation between quadriceps muscle strength and endurance and exercise performance in patients with COPD

To determine the association between quadriceps muscle strength (QMS) and endurance (QME) and exercise capacity in patients with COPD after stratification for sex and resting lung function (LF). Data were collected from 3,246 patients with COPD (60% men, 64 +/- 9yr), including measures of exercise capacity [peak aerobic capacity (peakVo(2)), 6-min walk distance (6MWD)] and isokinetic QMS and QME. Patients were stratified for sex, forced expiratory volume in 1s (>50/50/140/o(2) (r range: 0.47-0.61 and 0.49-0.65 for men and 0.53-0.66 and 0.48-0.67 for women, respectively) and 6MWD (r range: 0.29-0.42 and 0.44-0.55 for men and 0.25-0.54 and 0.34-0.55 for women, respectively) (P < 0.001). Regression models demonstrated that QMS and QME were significant determinants of peako(2) (explained variance R-2 range: 35.6%-48.8% for men and 36.8%-49.0% for women) and 6MWD (R-2 range: 24.3%-43.3% for men and 28.4%-40.3% for women), independent of age and fat-free mass. Quadriceps muscle function was significantly associated with peakVo(2) and 6MWD in male and female patients with COPD after stratification for resting LF, in which QME appear to be a more important determinant than QMS. This underlines the importance of systematically evaluating both quadriceps muscle strength and endurance in in all patients with COPD.

NEW & NOTEWORTHY Our findings identified quadriceps muscle function as an important determinant of exercise capacity across a wide spectrum of lung function. Quadriceps muscle endurance appears to be a more important determinant than quadriceps muscle strength, underlining the importance of including both the measurement of quadriceps muscle strength and endurance in routine assessment for all patient with COPD.