What is it?
The 6 minute walk test is designed to measure how your heart and lungs respond to 6 minutes of self-paced walking.
What is involved?
Before the test you will be fitted with a monitor on your wrist and a probe which will go on your finger. This monitor will measure your heart rate and blood oxygen level while you are walking. The walk test is entirely self-paced and you will walk between two cones, one lap of the course is 40 meters and we will ask you to do as many laps during the six minutes as you can manage at a walking pace. During the test we will also ask you how breathless you feel. There are chairs up and down the corridor for you to rest if needed and the walk test can be done with supplemental oxygen if you normally use it when walking.
What happens after the test?
After the test your consultant will receive a report detailing the results of your walk test.