DASI Calculator
Estimate Duke Activity Status Index score, peak oxygen uptake, and metabolic equivalents from 12 everyday activity questions.
Activity questionnaire
Choose Yes only when the activity can be performed. Every question is required for a complete score.
Results
Live estimates from the selected activities.
DASI score
34.7 points
METs
7.0 METs
VO₂ peak
24.5 mL/kg/min
Higher DASI scores correspond to higher estimated functional capacity. These values are questionnaire-based estimates, not a direct exercise-test measurement.
Excel export is ready for the current example.
DASI score 34.7 points; estimated METs 7.0; estimated VO₂ peak 24.5 milliliters per kilogram per minute.
Activity detail
Each Yes answer contributes the activity's published DASI weight; No contributes zero.
| Activity | Weight | Answer | Contribution |
|---|
How to use this DASI calculator
What this calculator does
The Duke Activity Status Index (DASI) is a 12-item activity questionnaire used to estimate functional capacity. This calculator adds the published weight for each activity answered Yes, then converts the total DASI score into estimated peak oxygen uptake and metabolic equivalents. The original instrument was developed as a brief way to approximate exercise capacity without performing a formal exercise test; the Duke University record for the original DASI study describes that validation. The result is an estimate of function, not a diagnosis, exercise prescription, or substitute for cardiopulmonary exercise testing when direct measurement is clinically needed.
When to use it
DASI is useful when a clinician or patient needs a structured summary of everyday activity tolerance, when functional status is being documented over time, when rehabilitation progress is being discussed, or when self-reported capacity is one part of a preoperative assessment. It can also make the logic of the questionnaire transparent by showing exactly which activities contribute points.
How to calculate
- The calculator opens with a complete demonstration: Yes for most everyday activities and No for running, heavy housework, and strenuous sports. The example already produces results and an immediately available Excel workbook.
- Replace each demonstration answer with the person's actual ability. Use Yes only when the activity can be performed; use No when it cannot. All 12 questions must have an answer before the score is considered complete.
- Read the DASI score first, then the derived METs and VO₂ peak estimates. The Activity detail table shows the published weight, the selected answer, and the exact contribution used in the sum.
- Select Download Excel to export the current validated answers and results as a real .xlsx workbook. Reset clears all 12 demonstration answers, removes current results and table rows, and disables Download Excel until a complete valid set of answers is entered again.
Input guide
Every input is a required Yes/No choice. Take care of self covers basic self-care such as eating, dressing, bathing, or toileting; Yes contributes 2.75 points. Walk indoors covers moving around the home and contributes 1.75. Walk 1 – 2 blocks refers to level-ground walking and contributes 2.75. Climb up a hill or stairs contributes 5.50. Run a short distance contributes 8.00. A realistic response can be No even when the lower-intensity walking items are Yes; do not infer a response solely from age or diagnosis.
Perform light housework includes tasks such as dusting or washing dishes and contributes 2.70 points. Perform moderate housework, such as vacuuming, sweeping, or carrying groceries, contributes 3.50. Perform heavy housework, such as scrubbing floors or moving heavy furniture, contributes 8.00. Do yardwork, such as raking, weeding, or pushing a power mower, contributes 4.50. For each of these, choose the person's actual capability rather than the frequency with which the task happens to be performed.
Have sexual relations contributes 5.25 points. Perform recreational activities refers to moderate recreation such as golf, bowling, dancing, doubles tennis, or throwing a ball and contributes 6.00. Perform strenuous sports, such as swimming, singles tennis, football, basketball, or skiing, contributes 7.50. These examples describe activity intensity; the question is about ability, not preference. The Inova DASI questionnaire provides a clinical form with the same activity wording and point weights.
Output guide
DASI score is the exact sum of the weights for Yes answers, from 0 to 58.2 points; higher values indicate higher self-reported functional capacity. METs is an estimated metabolic-equivalent value derived from predicted peak oxygen uptake, not a measured exercise-test MET level. VO₂ peak is the estimated peak oxygen uptake in mL/kg/min. The three summary pills repeat these same outputs for quick scanning; they do not introduce separate calculations.
In the Activity detail table, Activity identifies the questionnaire item, Weight is its fixed DASI point value, Answer is the selected Yes/No response, and Contribution is the amount added to the score: the full weight for Yes and 0 for No. A zero contribution therefore means that item was answered No, not that the questionnaire itself is invalid.
Worked example
The opening example answers Yes to self-care, indoor walking, walking 1 – 2 blocks, climbing, light housework, moderate housework, yardwork, sexual relations, and moderate recreation; it answers No to running, heavy housework, and strenuous sports. The contributing weights are 2.75 + 1.75 + 2.75 + 5.50 + 2.70 + 3.50 + 4.50 + 5.25 + 6.00 = 34.7 DASI points. Predicted VO₂ peak is 0.43 × 34.7 + 9.6 = 24.521 mL/kg/min, displayed as 24.5 mL/kg/min. Dividing by 3.5 gives 7.006 METs, displayed as 7.0 METs.
How the DASI calculation works
The scoring model is additive. A Yes response contributes its fixed activity weight; a No response contributes zero. The maximum occurs when all 12 activities are answered Yes: 58.2 points. After the score is obtained, estimated peak oxygen uptake is calculated as 0.43 × DASI + 9.6, and estimated METs are calculated as predicted VO₂ peak ÷ 3.5. Because both derived outputs are linear transformations of the score, every additional DASI point increases predicted VO₂ peak by 0.43 mL/kg/min and increases the derived MET estimate proportionally.
For perioperative assessment, DASI should be interpreted in clinical context rather than as a stand-alone risk rule. A multicentre prospective cohort study examined how DASI performs as part of preoperative risk evaluation; the Duke University publication record for that preoperative study is useful background for clinicians. The questionnaire has practical advantages because it is brief and standardized, but self-report can differ from directly measured exercise capacity.