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. 2015 Jun;104(6):493-500.
doi: 10.5935/abc.20150039. Epub 2015 May 5.

Heart Rate Variability Correlates to Functional Aerobic Impairment in Hemodialysis Patients

[Article in English, Portuguese]
Maria Angela Magalhães de Queiroz Carreira  1 , André Barros Nogueira  1 , Felipe Montes Pena  1 , Marcio Galindo Kiuchi  1 , Ronaldo Campos Rodrigues  1 , Rodrigo da Rocha Rodrigues  1 , Jorge Paulo Strogoff de Matos  2 , Jocemir Ronaldo Lugon  2
Affiliations

Heart Rate Variability Correlates to Functional Aerobic Impairment in Hemodialysis Patients

[Article in English, Portuguese]
Maria Angela Magalhães de Queiroz Carreira et al. Arq Bras Cardiol. 2015 Jun.

Abstract

Background: Autonomic dysfunction (AD) is highly prevalent in hemodialysis (HD) patients and has been implicated in their increased risk of cardiovascular mortality.

Objective: To correlate heart rate variability (HRV) during exercise treadmill test (ETT) with the values obtained when measuring functional aerobic impairment (FAI) in HD patients and controls.

Methods: Cross-sectional study involving HD patients and a control group. Clinical examination, blood sampling, transthoracic echocardiogram, 24-hour Holter, and ETT were performed. A symptom-limited ramp treadmill protocol with active recovery was employed. Heart rate variability was evaluated in time domain at exercise and recovery periods.

Results: Forty-one HD patients and 41 controls concluded the study. HD patients had higher FAI and lower HRV than controls (p<0.001 for both). A correlation was found between exercise HRV (SDNN) and FAI in both groups. This association was independent of age, sex, smoking, body mass index, diabetes, and clonidine or beta-blocker use, but not of hemoglobin levels.

Conclusion: No association was found between FAI and HRV on 24-hour Holter or at the recovery period of ETT. Of note, exercise HRV was inversely correlated with FAI in HD patients and controls.

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Conflict of interest statement

Potential Conflict of Interest

No potential conflict of interest relevant to this article was reported.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Functional aerobic impairment in hemodialysis (HD) patients and controls.
Figure 2
Figure 2
Heart rate variability (SDNN) during 24-h Holter, exercise, and recovery in hemodialysis (HD) patients and controls.
Figure 3
Figure 3
Correlation between functional aerobic impairment and heart rate variability (SDNN) during exercise in hemodialysis patients (left) and controls (right).
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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