Cardio-respiratory wavelet phase coherence at three ambient temperatures

Abstract

Here we adopt the definition of respiratory sinus arrhythmia (RSA) as the heart rate variability (HRV) in synchrony with respiration amplitude. Little is known about the effect ambient temperature has on RSA, and as RSA has potential as a biomarker for various conditions its effect should be examined. Here, employing wavelet analysis, we investigate HRV synchrony with both respiration amplitude and respiration frequency in 27 healthy adults at three ambient temperatures (20°C. 26°C. 32°C). Clinical Relevance- This work establishes that in healthy adults the amount of synchrony between HRV and respiration amplitude and between HRV and respiration frequency remains constant for temperatures between 20°C and 32°C