Efficacy of treadmill exercises on arterial blood oxygenation, oxygen consumption and walking distance in healthy elderly people: a controlled trial.

Background: Regular physical exercise and healthy lifestyle can improve aerobic power of the elderly, although lung capacity gradually deteriorates with age. The aims of the study are: a) to evaluate the therapeutic effect of a treadmill exercise program on arterial blood oxygenation (SaO2), maximum oxygen consumption (VO2max) and maximum walking distance (MWD) in healthy elderly people; b) to examine the outcome of the program at a supervised short-term and at an unsupervised long-term.

Methods: A prospective, not-randomized controlled intervention trial (NRCT) was conducted.