Journal article
Physical activity and heart rate variability in older adults: the Cardiovascular Health Study
Circulation (New York, N.Y.), Vol.129(21), pp.2100-2110
05/27/2014
Handle:
https://hdl.handle.net/2376/110207
PMCID: PMC4038662
PMID: 24799513
Abstract
Cardiac mortality and electrophysiological dysfunction both increase with age. Heart rate variability (HRV) provides indices of autonomic function and electrophysiology that are associated with cardiac risk. How habitual physical activity among older adults prospectively relates to HRV, including nonlinear indices of erratic sinus patterns, is not established. We hypothesized that increasing the levels of both total leisure-time activity and walking would be prospectively associated with more favorable time-domain, frequency-domain, and nonlinear HRV measures in older adults.
We evaluated serial longitudinal measures of both physical activity and 24-hour Holter HRV over 5 years among 985 older US adults in the community-based Cardiovascular Health Study. After multivariable adjustment, greater total leisure-time activity, walking distance, and walking pace were each prospectively associated with specific, more favorable HRV indices, including higher 24-hour standard deviation of all normal-to-normal intervals (Ptrend=0.009, 0.02, 0.06, respectively) and ultralow-frequency power (Ptrend=0.02, 0.008, 0.16, respectively). Greater walking pace was also associated with a higher short-term fractal scaling exponent (Ptrend=0.003) and lower Poincaré ratio (Ptrend=0.02), markers of less erratic sinus patterns.
Greater total leisure-time activity, and walking alone, as well, were prospectively associated with more favorable and specific indices of autonomic function in older adults, including several suggestive of more normal circadian fluctuations and less erratic sinoatrial firing. Our results suggest potential mechanisms that might contribute to lower cardiovascular mortality with habitual physical activity later in life.
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- Title
- Physical activity and heart rate variability in older adults: the Cardiovascular Health Study
- Creators
- Luisa Soares-Miranda - From the Department of Epidemiology, Harvard School of Public Health, Boston, MA (L.S.-M., J.S., D.M.); Research Centre in Physical Activity, Health and Leisure, Faculty of Sport, University of Porto, Portugal (L.S.-M.); Benjamin Leon Center for Geriatric Research and Education and Department of Medicine, Herbert Wertheim College of Medicine, Florida International University, Miami, FL (P.C.); Department of Epidemiology, University of Washington, Seattle, WA (G.E.D., D.S.S.); Department of Medicine, Cardiovascular Health Research Unit, University of Washington, Seattle, WA (D.S.S.); Heart Rate Variability Laboratory, Cardiovascular Division, Washington University School of Medicine, St Louis, MO (P.K.S.); and Division of Cardiovascular Medicine and Channing Division of Network Medicine, Brigham and Women's Hospital and Harvard Medical School, and Department of Nutrition, Harvard School of Public Health, Boston, MA (D.M.). soaresmiranda@fade.up.ptJacob Sattelmair - From the Department of Epidemiology, Harvard School of Public Health, Boston, MA (L.S.-M., J.S., D.M.); Research Centre in Physical Activity, Health and Leisure, Faculty of Sport, University of Porto, Portugal (L.S.-M.); Benjamin Leon Center for Geriatric Research and Education and Department of Medicine, Herbert Wertheim College of Medicine, Florida International University, Miami, FL (P.C.); Department of Epidemiology, University of Washington, Seattle, WA (G.E.D., D.S.S.); Department of Medicine, Cardiovascular Health Research Unit, University of Washington, Seattle, WA (D.S.S.); Heart Rate Variability Laboratory, Cardiovascular Division, Washington University School of Medicine, St Louis, MO (P.K.S.); and Division of Cardiovascular Medicine and Channing Division of Network Medicine, Brigham and Women's Hospital and Harvard Medical School, and Department of Nutrition, Harvard School of Public Health, Boston, MA (D.M.)Paulo Chaves - From the Department of Epidemiology, Harvard School of Public Health, Boston, MA (L.S.-M., J.S., D.M.); Research Centre in Physical Activity, Health and Leisure, Faculty of Sport, University of Porto, Portugal (L.S.-M.); Benjamin Leon Center for Geriatric Research and Education and Department of Medicine, Herbert Wertheim College of Medicine, Florida International University, Miami, FL (P.C.); Department of Epidemiology, University of Washington, Seattle, WA (G.E.D., D.S.S.); Department of Medicine, Cardiovascular Health Research Unit, University of Washington, Seattle, WA (D.S.S.); Heart Rate Variability Laboratory, Cardiovascular Division, Washington University School of Medicine, St Louis, MO (P.K.S.); and Division of Cardiovascular Medicine and Channing Division of Network Medicine, Brigham and Women's Hospital and Harvard Medical School, and Department of Nutrition, Harvard School of Public Health, Boston, MA (D.M.)Glen E Duncan - From the Department of Epidemiology, Harvard School of Public Health, Boston, MA (L.S.-M., J.S., D.M.); Research Centre in Physical Activity, Health and Leisure, Faculty of Sport, University of Porto, Portugal (L.S.-M.); Benjamin Leon Center for Geriatric Research and Education and Department of Medicine, Herbert Wertheim College of Medicine, Florida International University, Miami, FL (P.C.); Department of Epidemiology, University of Washington, Seattle, WA (G.E.D., D.S.S.); Department of Medicine, Cardiovascular Health Research Unit, University of Washington, Seattle, WA (D.S.S.); Heart Rate Variability Laboratory, Cardiovascular Division, Washington University School of Medicine, St Louis, MO (P.K.S.); and Division of Cardiovascular Medicine and Channing Division of Network Medicine, Brigham and Women's Hospital and Harvard Medical School, and Department of Nutrition, Harvard School of Public Health, Boston, MA (D.M.)David S Siscovick - From the Department of Epidemiology, Harvard School of Public Health, Boston, MA (L.S.-M., J.S., D.M.); Research Centre in Physical Activity, Health and Leisure, Faculty of Sport, University of Porto, Portugal (L.S.-M.); Benjamin Leon Center for Geriatric Research and Education and Department of Medicine, Herbert Wertheim College of Medicine, Florida International University, Miami, FL (P.C.); Department of Epidemiology, University of Washington, Seattle, WA (G.E.D., D.S.S.); Department of Medicine, Cardiovascular Health Research Unit, University of Washington, Seattle, WA (D.S.S.); Heart Rate Variability Laboratory, Cardiovascular Division, Washington University School of Medicine, St Louis, MO (P.K.S.); and Division of Cardiovascular Medicine and Channing Division of Network Medicine, Brigham and Women's Hospital and Harvard Medical School, and Department of Nutrition, Harvard School of Public Health, Boston, MA (D.M.)Phyllis K Stein - From the Department of Epidemiology, Harvard School of Public Health, Boston, MA (L.S.-M., J.S., D.M.); Research Centre in Physical Activity, Health and Leisure, Faculty of Sport, University of Porto, Portugal (L.S.-M.); Benjamin Leon Center for Geriatric Research and Education and Department of Medicine, Herbert Wertheim College of Medicine, Florida International University, Miami, FL (P.C.); Department of Epidemiology, University of Washington, Seattle, WA (G.E.D., D.S.S.); Department of Medicine, Cardiovascular Health Research Unit, University of Washington, Seattle, WA (D.S.S.); Heart Rate Variability Laboratory, Cardiovascular Division, Washington University School of Medicine, St Louis, MO (P.K.S.); and Division of Cardiovascular Medicine and Channing Division of Network Medicine, Brigham and Women's Hospital and Harvard Medical School, and Department of Nutrition, Harvard School of Public Health, Boston, MA (D.M.)Dariush Mozaffarian - From the Department of Epidemiology, Harvard School of Public Health, Boston, MA (L.S.-M., J.S., D.M.); Research Centre in Physical Activity, Health and Leisure, Faculty of Sport, University of Porto, Portugal (L.S.-M.); Benjamin Leon Center for Geriatric Research and Education and Department of Medicine, Herbert Wertheim College of Medicine, Florida International University, Miami, FL (P.C.); Department of Epidemiology, University of Washington, Seattle, WA (G.E.D., D.S.S.); Department of Medicine, Cardiovascular Health Research Unit, University of Washington, Seattle, WA (D.S.S.); Heart Rate Variability Laboratory, Cardiovascular Division, Washington University School of Medicine, St Louis, MO (P.K.S.); and Division of Cardiovascular Medicine and Channing Division of Network Medicine, Brigham and Women's Hospital and Harvard Medical School, and Department of Nutrition, Harvard School of Public Health, Boston, MA (D.M.)
- Publication Details
- Circulation (New York, N.Y.), Vol.129(21), pp.2100-2110
- Academic Unit
- Nutrition and Exercise Physiology, Department of
- Publisher
- United States
- Grant note
- HHSN268201200036C / NHLBI NIH HHS N01HC55222 / NHLBI NIH HHS N01HC85086 / NHLBI NIH HHS U01 HL080295 / NHLBI NIH HHS N01HC85082 / NHLBI NIH HHS N01HC85083 / NHLBI NIH HHS N01HC85080 / NHLBI NIH HHS R01 AG023629 / NIA NIH HHS R56 AG023629 / NIA NIH HHS N01HC85239 / NHLBI NIH HHS N01HC85081 / NHLBI NIH HHS HHSN268201200036C / PHS HHS HL080295 / NHLBI NIH HHS N01 HC55222 / NHLBI NIH HHS N01HC85079 / NHLBI NIH HHS R01 HL080295 / NHLBI NIH HHS AG023629 / NIA NIH HHS
- Identifiers
- 99900547029901842
- Language
- English
- Resource Type
- Journal article