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Updated: Jun 23, 2026

Quantitative Autonomic Testing
Published on: July 19, 2011
Heart rate variability with deep breathing as a clinical test of cardiovagal function
1Neuromuscular Center, Cleveland Clinic, 9500 Euclid Avenue, S90, Cleveland, OH 44195, USA. shieldr@ccf.org
Abstract:
Research into heart rate variability (HRV) and respiration over the past 150 years has led to the insight that HRV with deep breathing (HRVdb) is a highly sensitive measure of cardiovagal or parasympathetic cardiac function. This sensitivity makes HRVdb an important part of the battery of cardiovascular autonomic function tests used in clinical autonomic laboratories. HRVdb is a reliable and sensitive clinical test for early detection of cardiovagal dysfunction in a wide range of autonomic disorders.
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