Simple motor tasks independently predict extubation failure in critically ill neurological patients.

Objective:: To evaluate the usefulness of simple motor tasks such as hand grasping and tongue protrusion as predictors of extubation failure in critically ill neurological patients.

Methods:: This was a prospective cohort study conducted in the neurological ICU of a tertiary care hospital in the city of Porto Alegre, Brazil. Adult patients who had been intubated for neurological reasons and were eligible for weaning were included in the study.

Six-minute walk distance and work relationship with incremental treadmill cardiopulmonary exercise test in COPD.

Introduction: Cardiopulmonary exercise testing (CPET) is increasingly used to evaluate the overall impact of the illness on patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). While laboratory tests of exercise performance are costly, the 6-min walk test (6-MWT) can be more easily performed. Although the main outcome commonly used in this field test is the distance walked in 6 min (6-MWD), this measure does not account for differences in body weight.