Heart rate variability metrics and myocardial recovery in heart failure with reduced ejection fraction

Autonomic dysregulation is observed in heart failure (HF) with reduced ejection fraction (HFrEF). Abnormal heart rate variability (HRV), a measure of such dysregulation, is associated with poor prognosis in HFrEF. It is unknown if novel HRV metrics normalize in the patients with recovered ejection fraction (HFrecEF) compared to persistent HFrEF. The aim of this study was to investigate novel HRV indexes in persistent HFrEF in comparison to HFrecEF

A standard 10-min electrocardiography measurement was performed in patients categorized in four groups: persistent HFrEF (n = 40), HFrecEF (n = 41), stage A HF (n = 73) and healthy controls (n = 40).

All HRV indexes were significantly different between the four groups. Specifically, novel metrics, such as higher parasympathetic nervous system (PNS) index and lower sympathetic nervous system (SNS) index, were observed in the HFrecEF group compared to the persistent HFrEF group. In multiple logistic regression analysis, higher PNS index (odds ratio [OR] 2.02, 95% confidence interval [CI] 1.17–3.49; p = 0.01) and lower SNS index (OR 0.68, 95% CI 0.52–0.87; p = 0.002) were associated with HFrecEF. Receiver operating characteristic analysis showed that the SNS index had the highest area under the curve (AUC), followed by the PNS index and mean heart rate for the HF phenotype regarding EF recovery (AUC = 0.71, 0.69 and 0.69, respectively).

Myocardial functional recovery in HFrEF is associated with improved parasympathetic activity and reduced sympathetic activity, as reflected in the PNS and SNS indexes. These novel metrics can be potentially used to aid in identifying recovered versus non-recovered phenotypes in patients with HFrEF.