Population-based study of heart rate variability and prevalent myocardial infarction: The atherosclerosis risk in communities study

Abstract Clinically based studies have indicated that patients who have suffered myocardial infarction (MI) exhibit lower heart rate variability (HRV). Such associations have not been reported at the population level. To investigate whether MI is related to lower HRV in the general population, the authors examined a stratified random sample of 2,243 men and women aged 45–64 years, of whom 260 had had MI and 1,983 were free of any coronary heart disease manifestations. All were part of the biracial cohort of the Atherosclerosis Risk in Communities study sampled from four United States communities. Resting, 2-minute supine heart rate data were analyzed using spectral analysis to estimate high-frequency (0.16–0.35 Hz) and low-frequency (0.025–0.15 Hz) spectral powers as conventional indices of HRV. The mean levels of high-frequency powers were 1.02 and 1.23 (beats/min) 2 for MI and non-MI groups, respectively ( P 2 for MI and non-MI groups, respectively ( P