PT  - JOURNAL ARTICLE
AU  - Tim Takken
AU  - Arlette Hemel
AU  - Janjaap van der Net
AU  - Paul J M Helders
TI  - Aerobic fitness in children with juvenile idiopathic arthritis: a systematic review.
DP  - 2002 Dec 01
TA  - The Journal of Rheumatology
PG  - 2643--2647
VI  - 29
IP  - 12
4099  - http://www.jrheum.org/content/29/12/2643.short
4100  - http://www.jrheum.org/content/29/12/2643.full
SO  - J Rheumatol2002 Dec 01; 29
AB  - OBJECTIVE: To determine whether children with juvenile idiopathic arthritis (JIA) have lower physical fitness compared to healthy children, and to determine the clinical relevance of this impairment. METHODS: A systematic literature search was performed using MEDLINE, CINAHL, EMBASE and SPORTDiscus. The appropriate titles were identified and the data were extracted from these publications. The maximal oxygen consumption (VO2peak; in ml.kg-1.min-1) during a maximal exercise test until volitional exhaustion was used as the main outcome for this review. RESULTS: Nine studies were identified in the literature. Data from 5 studies (144 patients) were pooled in a metaanalysis. The VO2peak of the patients with JIA was 21.8% (95% CI 13.7, 29.9) lower than that of healthy children (p < 0.0001). CONCLUSION: The results of the metaanalysis suggest that children with JIA have moderate to heavy impairment in physical fitness as represented by maximal oxygen consumption compared to healthy children.