Session MC.3

Ability of Heart Rate Variability as Screening Tool for Heart Diseases in Men

A Heitmann, T Huebner, R Schroeder, S Perz, A Voss*

University of Applied Sciences
Jena, Germany

The aim of this study was to analyze the ability of heart rate variability (HRV) indices to identify patients with heart diseases as a first diagnosis at the general practitioner. In this study we applied linear (time and frequency domain) and nonlinear (detrended fluctuation analysis, compression entropy, symbolic dynamics, short-term symbolic dynamics and Poincaré plot analysis) methods of short term (five minutes ECG) HRV analysis. 78 healthy male subjects (REF) and 378 male patients (PAT) with several heart diseases (myocardial infarction, heart failure with and without peripheral arterial disease) were investigated considering two age groups: younger (30-50 years) and elderly men (51-70 years). The identification of heart disease patients was performed using a scoring system that based on cutoff-parameters calculated from REF. Comparing REF with PAT in both age matched groups the specificity were 100%. Combining the best indices from all domains revealed sensitivities of 74.07% for the younger and 77.09% for the elderly male group. Considering only time and frequency domain parameters the estimated sensitivities were 39.5/ 9.4% resp. 9.9/ 18.2%, whereas for applying only nonlinear dynamics indices the sensitivities increased to 64.2/ 72.4%. In conclusion, short term HRV analysis might offer a screening of heart diseases as a first diagnosis at the general practitioner. In contrast to linear indices especially nonlinear parameters contribute to discriminating heart diseases in men. Upcoming is a further study including women as well as a considerable enlargement of the enrolled patients and healthy subjects to overcome some of the limitations of this pilot study.

(Abstract Control Number: 138)