Abstract
Decreased Neonatal Heart Rate Variability (NHRV) was observed in infants dying of RDS over a decade ago; however, only recently instrumentation for its measurement has become available to the clinician. To establish the value of monitoring NHRV, 92 preterm infants were studied (B.W. 750-2500 g., G.A. 28-36 wks.). Each infant was monitored continuously during first 6 hours and for 1 hour at 24, 48 and 168 hours of life. During each hour, NHRV was quantified and related to the following parameters: sex, G.A., respiratory rate, arterial blood pressure, skin, ambient and core temperatures, blood gases, serum lactic acid, glucose and calcium levels, and the presence and severity of RDS. Discriminant analysis of data revealed that NHRV in healthy preterm infants was inversely related to heart rate level and directly related to the infant's post-natal age. In healthy babies whose range of gestation was limited to 32-36 wks., there was no significant correlation between NHRV and G.A. Decrease in NHRV was significantly related to the severity of RDS. Decreased NHRV significantly differentiated the infants with RDS from normal controls from the first hour of life and patients with RDS who died from the patients with RDS who survived after the fourth hour of life. This data reveals that NHRV a) should be corrected for heart rate level and postnatal age, b) is decreased in RDS, and c) can be used as a predictor of course and outcome from RDS.
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Cabal, L., Siassi, B., Zanini, B. et al. 941 PHYSIOLOGICAL AND PATHOLOGICAL FACTORS AFFECTING HEART RATE VARIABILITY IN PRETERM INFANTS. Pediatr Res 12 (Suppl 4), 520 (1978). https://doi.org/10.1203/00006450-197804001-00947
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1203/00006450-197804001-00947