Respiratory sinus arrhythmia and diseases of aging: Obesity, diabetes mellitus, and hypertension

Abstract

Associations between respiratory sinus arrhythmia (RSA) and several chronic diseases, including obesity, diabetes mellitus, and hypertension, have been documented in recent years. Although most evidence suggests reduced RSA is the result of chronic disease rather than the cause, some studies have documented reduced RSA among at-risk individuals prior to disease onset. These results raise the possibility that decreased vagal tone may play a role in the pathogenesis of certain chronic diseases. Presented here is a brief overview of studies which examine the relationship between vagal tone, as measured by RSA and baroreflex gain, and diseases of aging, including obesity, diabetes mellitus, and hypertension. Mechanisms by which vagal tone may be related to disease processes are discussed. In addition, we present results from a population-based study of RSA and hypertension in older adults. Consistent with previous studies, we found an inverse relationship between RSA and age, cigarette use, and diabetes. In logistic regression models which control for age, cigarette use, and diabetes, we found RSA was a significant negative predictor of hypertension. We conclude that the relationship between RSA and hypertension is somewhat independent of the age-related decline in parasympathetic activity.

Right anterior cingulate cortical volume covaries with respiratory sinus arrhythmia magnitude in combat veterans

“…RSA magnitude is of special interest here, however, because it is thought to specifically manifest the parasympathetic branch of the ANS, which has been studied less in PTSD, whereas all other easily measurable cardiovascular indexes represent combined parasympathetic and sympathetic efference in unknown proportions. In addition, growing evidence points to RSA magnitude as a prognostic indicator and/or mediating variable in a range of disease states for which persons with trauma and/or PTSD may be at increased risk [43][44][45][46][47][48].…”

Measurement fidelity of heart rate variability signal processing: The devil is in the details

“…Reduced HRV, suggested to reflect hyperactive sympathetic and/or hypoactive parasympathetic nervous system activity, has been implicated in the pathophysiology of a number of health outcomes including cardiac conditions such as myocardial infarction, coronary heart disease, and hypertension (Task Force of the European Society of Cardiology the North American Society of Pacing Electrophysiology, 1996;Liao et al, 2002), and noncardiac conditions such as obesity, diabetes (Masi et al, 2007), insulin resistance (Lindmark et al, 2003), metabolic syndrome (Hemingway et al, 2005), dyspepsia (Lorena et al, 2002), irritable bowel syndrome, anorexia nervosa (Mazurak et al, 2011), epilepsy (Ferri et al, 2002), anxiety (Friedman, 2007;Friedman and Thayer, 1998), and major depressive disorder (Nugent et al, 2011), as well as mortality (Camm et al, 2001;Gerritsen et al, 2001;Thayer and Lane, 2007). Significant developments in statistical, spectral, and geometric signal processing to automatically derive HRV parameters have led to their increased use in multidisciplinary settings.…”

Editorial: Derivation of respiratory gating signals from ECG signals

“…8 Potential down sides to the introduction of additional devices into the imaging suite is increased operational workload and costs associated with acquiring and maintaining the equipment. 2 Thus, systems that are able to perform multiple functions may be advantageous.…”

“…Primarily, the magnitude of RSA has been shown to have negative correlation with age, obesity, diabetes, hypertension, cardiovascular disease, and smoking. 8 Thus RSA may be less reliable for derivation of respiratory triggers in cardiac and lung oncology target populations. Psychological states that are associated with cardiac disease and aging such as depression have likewise been associated with reduced RSA, 8 while mental stress (e.g., anxiety) can also attenuate RSA.…”

“…8 Thus RSA may be less reliable for derivation of respiratory triggers in cardiac and lung oncology target populations. Psychological states that are associated with cardiac disease and aging such as depression have likewise been associated with reduced RSA, 8 while mental stress (e.g., anxiety) can also attenuate RSA. 9 While RSA has been demonstrated to be robust during exercise in healthy volunteers, 10 the effect of pharmacologic stressors commonly used in myocardial perfusion imaging is unclear.…”