Abstract des Autors

Measuring respiratory gas exchange, in particular the maximum oxygen uptake (V02max), is commonly utilized to quantify the cardiorespiratory fitness (CRF) in humans. CRF is considered a meaningful measure in research related to human health and performance in various sports. The development of mobile oxygen analyzers allows for assessments of respiratory gas exchange in non-laboratory settings. Thus, respiratory gas analysis can be performed outdoors, for example, on running tracks. At least in the European region, three mobile devices are wide-spread: the MetaMax 3b system (MM; Cortex Biophysik, Leipzig, Gerrnany), the Oxycon mobile system (OM; CareFusion, Rolle, Switzerland) and the K4b2 system (Cosmed, Rome, Italy). All products have proven at least acceptable validity in device-specific validation studies against the Douglas bag method, which is considered the gold standard for measurements of respiratory gas exchange. As the aforementioned devices are commonly applied in different types of studies, it is questionable whether the results of a specific study are directly transferable to a second study in which a different system was utilized for respiratory gas analysis. To our knowledge, no previous study compared the OM, K4b2 and the MM during exercise. Thus, the aim of our study was to compare the respiratory measurements in trained participants to determine the level of agreement between the three mobile devices. (geändert)