{
  "abstract": "Introduction Cardiopulmonary exercise testing (CPET) is used to support pre-operative risk stratification, evaluate cardiopulmonary disease, and investigate unexplained breathlessness. A previous United Kingdom (UK) survey (Reeves et al., 2018) highlighted variation in practice and a lack of standardisation. This survey provides an update to current UK CPET services following the implementation of ARTP national guidelines (Pritchard et al., 2021).Methods An online survey was distributed via the ARTP and the International Prehabilitation and Perioperative Exercise Testing Society. Departmental and CPET service leads across England, Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland were contacted between August 2025 and February 2026.Results A total of 105 survey responses were received across the UK ( figure 1). Over 25,000 CPETs are undertaken annually, with 73.3% of centres delivering adult-only services, 6.7% paediatric-only and 20% offering combined adult and paediatric services. Risk stratification was reported by 78 centres (74.3%), of which 71 (91.0%) utilised or adapted ARTP risk stratification to meet service needs. Services were led by senior physiologists or clinical scientists, particularly at Band 7 (40.0%) and Band 6 (30.5%) levels. Other services were led by doctors (7.6%) or anaesthetists (17.1%). Standard operating procedures (SOPs) were widely reported for undertaking CPET (87.6%); however, fewer centres had SOPs for reporting (60.0%) or interpretation (33.3%), and 11.4% of services reported no CPET-specific SOPs. Physiologist-led reporting was observed at 40.0% of sites, while anaesthetist-led and shared reporting responsibilities occurred at 25.7% and 18.1% of sites, respectively. Most services met ARTP guidance for report turnaround times of less than 10 days (90.4%). ECG training requirements varied. In-house training was most frequently reported (47.6%), followed by medical training pathways (23.8%), SCST accreditation, external course attendance (16.2%), while 16.2% of services reported no formal ECG training requirement. 54.2% of centres offer blood gas analysis, while 8 offer combined CPET-Continuous laryngeal endoscopy (CLE).Conclusion CPET services are widely established across the UK, despite the introduction of ARTP guidelines, significant variation remains in service structure, protocols, reporting practices, and training requirements. While most centres meet recommended reporting timelines, these findings highlight the need for greater national standardisation in CPET governance, training, and interpretation.Abstract P44 Figure 1United Kingdom CPET services (blue location markers = CPET centres; red location markers = CPET-CLE centres)",
  "authors": [
    {
      "affiliations": [
        "Royal Papworth Hospital NHS Foundation Trust, Cambridge, United Kingdom"
      ],
      "name": "Joshua Barnes"
    },
    {
      "affiliations": [
        "Liverpool Heart and Chest Hospital, Liverpool, United Kingdom"
      ],
      "name": "Scott Hawkes"
    }
  ],
  "title": "P44 Standardisation of CPET in UK clinical practice: Insights from a national survey",
  "uid": "44db0481-8ece-5ade-a80b-c9b4c511ae4c"
}