BACKGROUND: Physical exercise is generally recommended as part of life style changes post stroke. Monitoring cardiovascular effects may help motivate patients for further exercise, and can be an instrument to assess intervention effects in clinical trials. In 1 of 4 stroke patients, the heart rate variability may challenge currently used cardiovascular monitoring. The Graded Cycling Test with Talk Test is a submaximal exercise test independent of heart rate variability, shown reliable for patients with cardiac disease.

METHODS: Patients diagnosed with lacunar stroke according to TOAST (Trial of Org 10172 in Acute Stroke Treatment) criteria performed an incremental exercise test on a stationary bicycle with a 15 W (watt) increase in workload every minute. Toward the end of each incremental step, the patients recited a standardized text passage and subsequently were asked: "Are you still able to speak comfortably?" The test was stopped when the patients were no longer able to speak comfortably. Two consecutive tests were performed separated by 1 hour rest.

RESULTS: Sixty patients completed the study. The intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC2.1) was as follows: .97 [95% CI: .95-.98] with only a minor measurement error: 12.9 W for groups of patients (standard error of measurement, SEM95) and 18.3 W for individual patients (smallest real difference).

CONCLUSION: The "Graded Cycling Test with Talk Test" is feasible and reliable for monitoring exercise effects in patients with lacunar stroke. The high ICC2.1and small measurement error suggest it to be a valuable outcome measurement in clinical practice.