Analysis of Heart Rate Variability during the Performance of the Wim Hof Method in Healthy Subjects

Cardiorespiratory interaction is related to the heart rate variability (HRV) synchronized with respiration. These metrics help to comprehend the autonomic nervous system (ANS) functionality in cardiovascular mechanisms. In this work, we aim to study the HRV in healthy subjects aged 18-24 years during the breathing techniques based on deep breaths followed by apnoeas, developed by Wim Hof (WHM). The attributes of all participates have been treated as a group and therefore, separated by gender. A total of 11 intervals have been distinguished: starting of basal respiration (SRI = 1), controlled deep breaths (CDB = 3), long expiratory apnoea (LEA = 3), short inspiratory apnoea (SIA = 3) and ending with basal respiration again (FRI = 1). To strengthen the HRV knowledge extraction from these scenarios, time and frequency analysis is conducted. In general, breathing and apnoea intervals presented significant statistically differences (p < 0.05), heart rate (HR) mean between SRI and FRI (p < 0.001), RR variability of LEA intervals (p < 0.01), root mean square of RR intervals during CDB (p < 0.05), maximum high frequency (HF) peak amplitude between SRI and FRI (p = 0.016), and low frequency (LF) area for LEA intervals (p < 0.001). When performing the frequency analysis, it has been observed that the sympathetic nervous system (SNS) has a higher contribution in the apnoea intervals. In conclusion, the WHM method implementation seems to involve a decrease in the HR. Specific breathing techniques could help to control the body in different conditions.Clinical Relevance- The WHM seems to imply a decrease on HR. Furthermore, after the implementation of the WHM, women presented higher HRV.