Test-retest reliability and usefulness of a new firefighting-simulated task test in Brazilian firefighters

Background Given that Brazilian fire departments currently rely on generic fitness tests with limited job specificity and legal defensibility, there is a clear need to develop valid and reliable physical fitness assessments that accurately reflect the operational demands of firefighters. Objective This study investigated the test-retest reliability and usefulness of a newly developed firefighter-simulated task test composed of tasks representative of actual firefighting duties. Methods Twenty-one male professional firefighters (35 ± 5 years; 10 ± 7 years of service) completed two maximal-effort testing sessions separated by 72–96 h. Each session included two simulating circuits performed in a fixed order: road crash extrication tasks (Crash) followed by structural fire suppression tasks (Fire), with a 10-min passive rest interval between circuits. Ratings of perceived exertion (RPE) and heart rate (HR) were recorded. Reliability was assessed using mean changes, intraclass correlation coefficients (ICC), coefficients of variation (CV), and typical error (TE). Usefulness was evaluated by comparing TE with worthwhile changes. Results The CV was excellent (< 5%) for all performance measurements. ICC values were excellent (> 0.9) for Fire and total time (sum of Crash and Fire) and moderate (0.71) for Crash. Fire and total time were able to detect moderate but not small performance changes, whereas Crash time was not sensitive to such changes. RPE and HR increased between sessions (p < 0.02). Conclusion The newly developed firefighting-simulated task test demonstrated acceptable reliability scores, particularly for Fire and total time, and appears suitable for detecting moderate to large changes in firefighter performance.