scholarly journals Evaluation of Autonomic Nervous System, Saliva Cortisol Levels, and Cognitive Function in Major Depressive Disorder Patients

2018 ◽  
Vol 2018 ◽  
pp. 1-8 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sukonthar Ngampramuan ◽  
Puttichai Tungtong ◽  
Sujira Mukda ◽  
Apichat Jariyavilas ◽  
Chanin Sakulisariyaporn

Major depressive disorder (MDD) is associated with changes in autonomic nervous system (ANS) and cognitive impairment. Heart rate variability (HRV) and Pulse pressure (PP) parameters reflect influences of the sympathetic and parasympathetic nervous system. Cortisol exerts its greatest effect on the hippocampus, a brain area closely related to cognitive function. This study aims to examine the effect of HRV, PPG, salivary cortisol levels, and cognitive function in MDD patients by using noninvasive techniques. We have recruited MDD patients, diagnosed based on DSM-V-TR criteria compared with healthy control subjects. Their HRV and PP were measured by electrocardiogram (ECG) and photoplethysmography (PPG). Salivary cortisol levels were collected and measured on the same day. MDD patients exhibited elevated values of mean HR, standard deviation of HR (SDHR), low frequency (LF) power, low frequency/high frequency (LF/HF) ratio, mean PP, standard deviation of pulse pressure (SDPP), and salivary cortisol levels. Simultaneously, they displayed lower values of mean of R-R intervals (mean NN), standard deviation of R-R intervals (SDNN), high frequency (HF) power, and WCST scores. Results have shown that the ANS of MDD patients were dominated by the sympathetic activity and that they have cognitive deficits especially in the domain of executive functioning.

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Francesca Cormack ◽  
Maggie McCue ◽  
Nick Taptiklis ◽  
Caroline Skirrow ◽  
Emilie Glazer ◽  
...  

BACKGROUND Cognitive symptoms are common in major depressive disorder, and may help to identify patients that need treatment or who are not experiencing adequate treatment response. Digital tools to provide real time data assessing cognitive function could help to support patients treatment and remediation of cognitive and mood symptoms. OBJECTIVE This study examined adherence, feasibility, and validity of a wearable high-frequency cognitive and mood assessment app over 6 weeks, corresponding to when antidepressant pharmacotherapy begins to show efficacy. METHODS Thirty patients (aged 19−63; 19 women) with mild-moderate depression participated. The new Cognition Kit application was delivered via the Apple Watch, providing a high-resolution touch screen display for task presentation and logging responses. Cognition was assessed by the n-back task up to 3 times daily and depressed mood by 3 short questions once daily. Selected tests sensitive to depression from the Cambridge Neuropsychological Test Automated Battery and validated questionnaires of depression symptom severity were administered on 4 occasions (baseline, weeks 1, 3, and 6). Adherence was defined as participants completing at least one assessment daily. RESULTS Adherence was excellent for mood and cognitive assessments (95% and 96%, respectively), did not deteriorate over time, and was not influenced by depression symptom severity or cognitive function at study onset. Daily mood assessments showed good correspondence with validated depression questionnaires (correlations range from .45 to .69 for total daily mood score) and daily cognitive assessments showed good correspondence with cognitive tests sensitive to depression (correlations ranged from .37 to .50 for mean n-back). CONCLUSIONS The study supports the feasibility and validity of high-frequency assessment of cognitive function and mood function using wearable devices over an extended period in patients with major depressive disorder. CLINICALTRIAL clinicaltrials.gov NCT03067506


2011 ◽  
Vol 14 (3) ◽  
pp. 257-268 ◽  
Author(s):  
Tondi M. Harrison ◽  
Roger L. Brown

The ability to maintain and respond to challenges to homeostasis is primarily a function of the autonomic nervous system (ANS). In infants with complex congenital heart defects this ability may be impaired. This study described change in ANS function before and after surgical correction in infants with transposition of the great arteries (TGA) and in healthy infants. A total of 15 newborn infants with TGA were matched with 16 healthy infants on age, gender, and feeding type. The ANS function was measured using heart rate variability (HRV). Data were collected preoperatively in the 1st week of life and postoperatively before, during, and after feeding at 2 weeks and 2 months of age. Infants with TGA demonstrated significantly lower high-frequency and low-frequency HRV preoperatively ( p < .001) when compared with healthy infants. At 2 weeks, infants with TGA were less likely than healthy infants to demonstrate adaptive changes in high-frequency HRV during feeding (Wald Z = 2.002, p = .045), and at 2 months, 40% of TGA infants exhibited delayed postfeeding recovery. Further research is needed to more thoroughly describe mechanisms of a physiologically adaptive response to feeding and to develop nursing interventions supportive of these high-risk infants.


Author(s):  
Robert P Hirten ◽  
Matteo Danieletto ◽  
Robert Scheel ◽  
Mark Shervey ◽  
Jiayi Ji ◽  
...  

Abstract Background Differences in autonomic nervous system function, measured by heart rate variability (HRV), have been observed between patients with inflammatory bowel disease and healthy control patients and have been associated in cross-sectional studies with systemic inflammation. High HRV has been associated with low stress. Methods Patients with ulcerative colitis (UC) were followed for 9 months. Their HRV was measured every 4 weeks using the VitalPatch, and blood was collected at baseline and every 12 weeks assessing cortisol, adrenocorticotropin hormone, interleukin-1β, interleukin-6, tumor necrosis factor-α, and C-reactive protein (CRP). Stool was collected at enrollment and every 6 weeks for fecal calprotectin. Surveys assessing symptoms, stress, resilience, quality of life, anxiety, and depression were longitudinally collected. Results Longitudinally evaluated perceived stress was significantly associated with systemic inflammation (CRP, P = 0.03) and UC symptoms (P = 0.02). There was a significant association between HRV and stress (low-frequency to high-frequency power [LFHF], P = 0.04; root mean square of successive differences [RMSSD], P = 0.04). The HRV was associated with UC symptoms (LFHF, P = 0.03), CRP (high frequency, P &lt; 0.001; low frequency, P &lt; 0.001; RMSSD, P &lt; 0.001), and fecal calprotectin (high frequency, P &lt; 0.001; low frequency, P &lt; 0.001; RMSSD, P &lt; 0.001; LFHF, P &lt; 0.001). Significant changes in HRV indices from baseline developed before the identification of a symptomatic or inflammatory flare (P &lt; 0.001). Conclusions Longitudinally evaluated HRV was associated with UC symptoms, inflammation, and perceived and physiological measures of stress. Significant changes in HRV were observed before the development of symptomatic or inflammatory flare.


1999 ◽  
Vol 97 (5) ◽  
pp. 579-584 ◽  
Author(s):  
Giuseppe PAOLISSO ◽  
Daniela MANZELLA ◽  
Michelangela BARBIERI ◽  
Maria Rosaria RIZZO ◽  
Antonio GAMBARDELLA ◽  
...  

Healthy centenarians have better anthropometric, endocrine, metabolic and immunological parameters than aged subjects (> 75 years old). Heart rate variability (HRV) has been demonstrated to be a good index of the cardiac autonomic nervous system. It is not known whether there are any differences in cardiac autonomic nervous system activity between aged subjects and healthy centenarians. It is possible that differences in cardiac autonomic nervous system activity could represent one of a cluster of factors explaining the extreme survival of centenarians. Thus we aimed to answer the following question: is there any difference in baseline HRV parameters between aged subjects and healthy centenarians? Therefore power spectral analysis of HRV at baseline was investigated in 25 aged subjects (age ⩾ 75 years) and 30 healthy centenarians (age ⩾ 100 years). Anthropometric measurements were made in all subjects, fasting blood samples were drawn for metabolite determinations, and HRV was determined. Independent of age, gender, body mass index and fasting plasma noradrenaline and free 3,3′,5-tri-iodothyronine concentrations, healthy centenarians had lower basal values for total power (1318±546 compared with 1918±818 ms2; P< 0.01) and the low-frequency component (33±21 compared with 50±11 normalized units; P< 0.03) and a higher value for the high-frequency component (77±15 compared with 61±18 normalized units; P< 0.05) than aged subjects. Consequently, the low-frequency/high-frequency ratio (0.43±0.07 compared with 0.91±0.05; P< 0.02) was also lower in the healthy centenarians than in the aged subjects. Our study demonstrates that the basal low-frequency/high-frequency ratio, an indirect index of cardiac sympathovagal balance, is lower in healthy centenarians than in aged subjects.


2016 ◽  
Vol 85 (4) ◽  
pp. 355-362 ◽  
Author(s):  
Iwona Janczarek ◽  
Witold Kędzierski ◽  
Anna Stachurska ◽  
Izabela Wilk ◽  
Ryszard Kolstrung ◽  
...  

Emotional excitability influences horses’ performance in sports and races. The aim of the study was to analyse whether the balance of the autonomic system which can occur when sympathetic system activity is at various levels might impact the horses’ racing performance. The study was carried out on 67 purebred Arabian horses trained for racing. The following indices were analysed: low frequency (LF), high frequency (HF), and the ratio of spectrum power at low frequencies to high frequencies (LF/HF). The autonomic nervous system activity was measured × 3 during the training season, at three-month intervals. Each examination included a 30-min measurement at rest and after a training session. The racing performance indices in these horses were also analysed. Better racing results were found in horses with enhanced LF/HF. The worst racing results were determined in horses with low LF.


10.2196/12814 ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 6 (11) ◽  
pp. e12814 ◽  
Author(s):  
Francesca Cormack ◽  
Maggie McCue ◽  
Nick Taptiklis ◽  
Caroline Skirrow ◽  
Emilie Glazer ◽  
...  

Background Cognitive symptoms are common in major depressive disorder and may help to identify patients who need treatment or who are not experiencing adequate treatment response. Digital tools providing real-time data assessing cognitive function could help support patient treatment and remediation of cognitive and mood symptoms. Objective The aim of this study was to examine feasibility and validity of a wearable high-frequency cognitive and mood assessment app over 6 weeks, corresponding to when antidepressant pharmacotherapy begins to show efficacy. Methods A total of 30 patients (aged 19-63 years; 19 women) with mild-to-moderate depression participated in the study. The new Cognition Kit app was delivered via the Apple Watch, providing a high-resolution touch screen display for task presentation and logging responses. Cognition was assessed by the n-back task up to 3 times daily and depressed mood by 3 short questions once daily. Adherence was defined as participants completing at least 1 assessment daily. Selected tests sensitive to depression from the Cambridge Neuropsychological Test Automated Battery and validated questionnaires of depression symptom severity were administered on 3 occasions (weeks 1, 3, and 6). Exploratory analyses examined the relationship between mood and cognitive measures acquired in low- and high-frequency assessment. Results Adherence was excellent for mood and cognitive assessments (95% and 96%, respectively), did not deteriorate over time, and was not influenced by depression symptom severity or cognitive function at study onset. Analyses examining the relationship between high-frequency cognitive and mood assessment and validated measures showed good correspondence. Daily mood assessments correlated moderately with validated depression questionnaires (r=0.45-0.69 for total daily mood score), and daily cognitive assessments correlated moderately with validated cognitive tests sensitive to depression (r=0.37-0.50 for mean n-back). Conclusions This study supports the feasibility and validity of high-frequency assessment of cognition and mood using wearable devices over an extended period in patients with major depressive disorder.


Author(s):  
Hamed Jalilian ◽  
Zahra Zamanian ◽  
Omid Gorjizadeh ◽  
Shahrzad Riaei ◽  
Mohammad Reza Monazzam ◽  
...  

Background: Whole-body vibration (WBV) and mental workload (MWL) are common stressors among drivers who attempt to control numerous variables while driving a car, bus, or train. Objective: To examine the individual and combined effects of the WBV and MWL on the autonomic nervous system. Methods: ECG of 24 healthy male students was recorded using NeXus-4 while performing two difficulty levels of a computerized dual task and when they were exposing to WBV (intensity 0.5 m/s2; frequency 3–20 Hz). Each condition was examined for 5 min individually and combined. Inter-beat intervals were extracted from ECG records. The time-domain and frequency-domain heart rate variability parameters were then extracted from the inter-beat intervals data. Results: A significant (p=0.008) increase was observed in the mean RR interval while the participants were exposed to WBV; there was a significant (p=0.02) reduction in the mean RR interval while the participants were performing the MWL. WBV (p=0.02) and MWL significantly (p<0.001) increased the standard deviation of normal-to-normal intervals with a moderate-to-large effect size. All active periods increased the low-frequency component and low-frequency/high-frequency ratio. However, only the WBV significantly increased the highfrequency component. A significant (p=0.01) interaction was observed between the WBV and MWL on low-frequency component and low-frequency/high-frequency ratio. Conclusion: Exposure to WBV and MWL can dysregulate the autonomic nervous system. WBV stimulates both sympathetic and parasympathetic nervous system; MWL largely affects sympathetic nervous system. Both variables imbalance the sympatho-vagal control as well.


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