The introduction of the Heart Timing (HT) signal provides a more accurate, unbiased method for spectral estimation of heart rate variability compared to traditional HR or HP signals.
The heart rate variability (HRV) is an extended tool to analyze the mechanisms controlling the cardiovascular system. In this paper, the integral pulse frequency modulation model (IPFM) is assumed. It generates the beat occurrence times from a modulating signal. This signal is thought to represent the autonomic nervous system action, mostly studied in its frequency components. Different spectral estimation methods try to infer the modulating signal characteristics from the available beat timing on the electrocardiogram signal. These methods estimate the spectrum through the heart period (HP) or the heart rate (HR) signal. We introduce a new time domain HRV signal, the Heart Timing (HT) signal. We demonstrate that this HT signal, in contrast with the HR or HP, makes it possible to recover an unbiased estimation of the modulating signal spectra. In this estimation we avoid the spurious components and the low-pass filtering effect generated when analyzing HR or HP.
Mateo et al. (2000) studied this question.