Key result
Equine atrial fibrillation shows a 0.17 LF/HF ratio, suggesting predominant parasympathetic AV node modulation.
Case Report (n=1)
No
Power spectral analysis of heart rate variability in a horse with atrial fibrillation suggests that predominant parasympathetic activity may modulate the intrinsic behavior of the atrioventricular node.
May indicate parasympathetic AV node modulation in equine AF; hypothesis-generating and should not yet change practice.
This study has demonstrated the power spectral analysis of heart rate variability in a horse with atrial fibrillation. A large peak in the high frequency (HF) area of the power spectrum appeared in the horse. Hourly heart rate, the low frequency (LF) power, the HF power, and LF/HF ratio were almost constant during the recording period. The values of HF and LF power in the horse with atrial fibrillation were much larger than those in normal horses. The normalized unit of HF (HF n.u.) was much larger than that of LF (LF n.u.). Furthermore, the LF/HF ratio was very small in the horse. These results suggest that the ventricular rhythm has a respiratory related periodicity in the horse with atrial fibrillation and the predominant parasympathetic activity may modulate the intrinsic behavior of the atrioventricular node during atrial fibrillation.
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Kuwahara et al. (1998) conducted a case report in Atrial fibrillation (n=1). Atrial fibrillation vs. Normal horses (historical) was evaluated on LF/HF ratio. In a horse with atrial fibrillation, power spectral analysis showed a very low LF/HF ratio (0.17) and a large high-frequency peak, suggesting predominant parasympathetic modulation of the AV node.
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