Effectiveness of the 6-minute walk test in the assessment of aerobic capacity in people with obesity: a scoping review

Objective: This scoping review aimed to systematize the available evidence on the effectiveness of the 6-minute walk test in the assessment of aerobic capacity in people with obesity, and its usefulness for the prescription of physical exercise. Methods: PubMed, Science Direct, Springer, Scopus and LILACS databases were reviewed. The search was limited from 2013 to 2023. Randomized controlled studies and prospective longitudinal studies were included. The data obtained were analyzed using the checklist proposed by the PRISMA Extension for Scoping Reviews (PRISMA-ScR). Results: A total of 10 papers reporting results from randomized controlled studies and prospective longitudinal studies (50% of each) were analyzed, with 70% being from the Americas and 90% being written in English. The total number of participants was 1,575, and they were aged between 18 and 75 years. In the studies that specified sex, 66.3% were women. The body mass index for the experimental group ranged from 30.5 ± 2.8 to 48.99 ± 11.61 kg/m2. The distance traveled in the 6-minute walk test was observed to range from 428.3 ± 85.7 m, p < 0.0001, to 602.6 ± 70.2 m, p = 0.001. The VO2 max ranged between 16.9 ± 2.7 mLO2/kg/min-1 (p < 0.05) and 25.1 ± 4.7 mLO2/kg/min-1 (p = 0.001). Conclusion: The 6-minute walk test is an effective and complementary tool in the design of exercise programs aimed at people with obesity, as it is a useful, simple and objective measure for exercise prescription and clinical follow-up.