The 24-Hour Cardiac Autonomic Activity in Patients With Allergic Rhinitis

Area of Science:

• Cardiology
• Autonomic Nervous System
• Allergology

Background:

• Limited understanding of 24-hour cardiac autonomic activity in allergic rhinitis (AR).
• Heart rate variability (HRV) is a key indicator of cardiac autonomic function.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate cardiac autonomic activity using 24-hour Holter monitoring in patients with AR.
• To compare HRV parameters between AR patients and a matched control group.

Main Methods:

• 32 AR patients and 128 matched controls (age, sex, hypertension, diabetes) were enrolled.
• 24-hour Holter monitoring was used to measure HRV.
• Comparison of time-domain and frequency-domain HRV parameters between groups.

Main Results:

• No significant differences in time-domain HRV parameters were observed.
• AR patients exhibited significantly lower low-frequency to high-frequency ratio and low-frequency power.
• AR patients showed significantly higher high-frequency power, indicating sympathetic withdrawal.
• Multiple regression analysis confirmed AR's independent association with sympathetic withdrawal (aOR=3.393, P=0.020).

Conclusions:

• Patients with AR demonstrate distinct cardiac autonomic activity patterns over 24 hours.
• Findings suggest a link between AR and sympathetic withdrawal compared to the general population.