Relevance of Fitness to Mortality Risk in Men Receiving Contemporary Medical Care

An inverse association between cardiorespiratory fitness and mortality was robustly demonstrated 3 decades ago. The purpose of this study was to determine whether significant advances in disease prevention, detection, and treatment since that time have modified this association. A total of 47,862 men completed baseline examinations, including a maximal treadmill test. Cohort 1 (n = 24,475) was examined during 1971 to 1991 and followed for mortality through 1992. Cohort 2 (n = 23,387) was examined during 1992 to 2013 with follow-up through 2014. Men were categorized as low fit, moderate fit, or high fit using Cooper Clinic normative data. Hazard ratios (HRs) for all-cause, cardiovascular disease, and cancer mortality were determined across fitness categories in the 2 cohorts. A significant inverse trend between fitness categories and all-cause (HR: 1.0, 0.60, and 0.53 in cohort 1 and HR: 1.0, 0.76, and 0.52 in cohort 2) and cardiovascular disease mortality (HR: 1.0, 0.55, and 0.43 in cohort 1 and HR: 1.0, 0.84, and 0.52 in cohort 2) was observed (p trend