No Ceiling to Mortality Benefits of Cardiorespiratory Fitness in Patients Undergoing Stress Testing

Large cohort analysis shows benefits accrue even at extreme fitness levels

Cardiorespiratory fitness is associated with long-term mortality benefits in a dose-response manner that shows no upper limit, according to a large retrospective cohort study in adults undergoing exercise treadmill testing. Cleveland Clinic researchers published the findings in JAMA Network Open on Oct. 19, 2018.

“We found that extremely high aerobic fitness was associated with the greatest survival and that this benefit extended to individuals aged 70 or older and to people with hypertension,” says Cleveland Clinic cardiologist Wael Jaber, MD, the paper’s senior author. “These results underscore the importance of aerobic fitness to overall health, including its importance relative to traditional clinical risk factors.”