Choosing the Right Test: Five Sit-to-Stand vs. Four-Meter Gait Speed for Identifying COPD Patients

<bold>Introduction:</bold> Cigarette smoking is known to be associated with reduced exercise tolerance. The 4-Meter-Gait-Speed (4MGS) test and the 5-repetitions-Sit-To-Stand (5STS) test are easy, inexpensive and reliable measures of functional performance. In this context, we aimed to study the relevance of the 4MGS test and the 5STS test to identify COPD Patients from Healthy Smokers. <bold>Methods:</bold> This was a cross-sectional study including cigarette-smoking subjects who had been referred from September 2022 to September 2023 to our department. All patients performed 5STS test, 4MGS test and spirometry with measurement of Forced Expiratory Volume in the first second (FEV1), Forced Vital Capacity (FVC) and FEV1/FVC ratio. The study population was divided into two groups according to spirometry results: G1: subjects with COPD (post-bronchodilator FEV1/FVC ratio <70%) and G2: healthy smokers (normal spirometry). <bold>Results:</bold> The study population included 137 subjects, of whom 74 (54%) had COPD. The mean age was 59.91±10.93 years old. Compared to G2, patients in G1 had a significantly higher number of cigarette packs consumed per year (G1: 55.07±33.33 vs G2: 34.84±22.86; p<0.0001) and presented poorer lung function (FEV1%: 55.43 and FVC%: 78.78 in G1 vs FEV1%: 85.04 and FVC%: 90.98 in G2; p<0.0001). When comparing physical capacity between the 2 groups, we found that 5STS test duration was significantly higher in G1 than G2 (15.03±5.31s in G1 vs 13.03±5.30s in G2; p=0.035). However, no significant difference was found in terms of 4MGS score between G1 and G2. <bold>Conclusion:</bold> The 5STS test may serve as a simple initial field test to distinguish between COPD patients and healthy smokers.