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. 2013;56(12):1940-4.
doi: 10.1080/00140139.2013.840743. Epub 2013 Oct 11.

Effect of measurement duration on accuracy of pulse-counting

Hiromitsu Kobayashi  1
Affiliations
Free PMC article

Effect of measurement duration on accuracy of pulse-counting

Hiromitsu Kobayashi. Ergonomics. 2013.
Free PMC article

Abstract

In this study, the relation between the measurement duration and accuracy of pulse-counting was quantitatively examined with special reference to low-frequency fluctuations in heart rate variability. The interbeat intervals of 70 healthy male subjects were measured in standing, sitting and supine positions. Pulse rates for various durations were calculated by objective-scoring simulation based on the heartbeat recordings of the subjects. The duration of pulse-counting continuously varied from 6 to 60 s in the simulation. Simulated pulse rates were compared with the rate calculated from the 60 s that includes the given duration, and the absolute difference between the two rates was defined as the error. Average errors of pulse-counting for 15 s were 1.89, 1.89 and 1.80 bpm for standing, sitting and supine positions, respectively. No difference in error was observed between standing and sitting positions; however, smaller errors were observed in the supine position.

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Figures

Figure 1.
Figure 1.
Schematic illustration of the error simulation. Note: t – duration (s); n – number of pulses during ‘t’ s; PRt – pulse rate at a duration of ‘t’ s (bpm); PR60 – pulse rate at a duration of 60 s (bpm); error (t) – absolute value of the difference between PRt and PR60 (bpm).
Figure 2.
Figure 2.
Continuous plot of the simulated error and duration of pulse-counting. Note: The error increased hyperbolically with decreasing duration. No significant difference was found between the errors in sitting and standing positions; however, smaller errors were observed in the supine position.
Figure 3.
Figure 3.
Correlations of the simulated error for a 15 s measurement in the sitting position with heart rate (A), high-frequency component (B), low-frequency component (C), very low-frequency component (D), total-power component (E) and age (F). Note: The errors did not correlate with heart rate (A). Correlations were observed between simulated errors and frequency components of heart rate variability (B–E). Smaller errors were observed in older compared with younger subjects (F).
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