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Updated: May 12, 2026

Calculating Heart Rate Variability from ECG Data from Youth with Cerebral Palsy During Active Video Game Sessions
Published on: June 5, 2019
Heart rate variability in patients with atrial septal defect and healthy children
Süleyman Bakari1, Bülent Koca, Funda Oztunç
1The Karen Hospital, Department of Pediatric Cardiology, Nairobi, Kenya.
Objective:
Heart rate variability (HRV) measures are altered in various cardiac and non-cardiac situations in children. The autonomic nervous system is assumed to have a role in the pathophysiology of atrial septal defect (ASD). In this study, we evaluated the autonomic system by measuring HRV in children with ASD.
Methods:
Twenty-eight patients with ASD and 32 healthy children (mean ages: 6.6±2.1 years and 6.4±2.2 years, respectively) were enrolled in the study. Twenty-four-hour ambulatory electrocardiographic recordings were obtained and the seven time-domain (SDNN, SDANN, rMSSD, SD, SDNN index, PNN50, and mean RR) and four frequency-domain (VLF, LF, HF, and LF/HF ratio) indices of HRV were analyzed.
Results:
A significant decrease in calculated HRV variables was observed in children with ASD as compared to controls. The HRV alteration was found in both time-domain and frequency-domain parameters.
Conclusions:
Our results indicate that HRV is decreased in children with ASD, which implies parasympathetic withdrawal and sympathetic predominance.
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