title: Heart rate variability in newborns with hypoxic brain injury.
abstract: In neonatal intensive care units, there is a need for continuous monitoring of sick newborns with perinatal hypoxic ischemic brain injury (HIE). We assessed the utility of heart rate variability (HRV) in newborns with acute HIE undergoing simultaneous continuous EEG (cEEG) and ECG monitoring. HIE was classified using clinical criteria as well as visual grading of cEEG. Newborns were divided into two groups depending on the severity of the hypoxic injury and outcome. Various HRV parameters were compared between these groups, and significantly decreased HRV was found in neonates with severe HIE. As HRV is affected by many factors, it is difficult to attribute this difference solely to HIE. However, this study suggests that further investigation of HRV as a monitoring tool for acute neonatal hypoxic injury is warranted.
authors.affiliation: Department of Electrical Engineering (ESAT-SCD), Katholieke Universiteit Leuven, Leuven, Belgium. Vladimir.Matic@esat.kuleuven.be.|iMinds Future Health Department, Leuven, Belgium. Vladimir.Matic@esat.kuleuven.be.
authors.forename: Vladimir
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Matić
authors.affiliation: Section of Clinical Neurophysiology, Department of Neurology, Erasmus MC, Rotterdam, the Netherlands.
authors.forename: Perumpillichira J
authors.initials: PJ
authors.lastname: Cherian
authors.affiliation: Department of Electrical Engineering (ESAT-SCD), Katholieke Universiteit Leuven, Leuven, Belgium.|iMinds Future Health Department, Leuven, Belgium.
authors.forename: Devy
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Widjaja
authors.affiliation: Department of Pediatrics, University Hospital Gasthuisberg, Leuven, Belgium.
authors.forename: Katrien
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Jansen
authors.affiliation: Neonatal Intensive Care Unit, University Hospital Gasthuisberg, Leuven, Belgium.
authors.forename: Gunnar
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Naulaers
authors.affiliation: Department of Electrical Engineering (ESAT-SCD), Katholieke Universiteit Leuven, Leuven, Belgium.|iMinds Future Health Department, Leuven, Belgium.
authors.forename: Sabine
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Van Huffel
authors.affiliation: Department of Electrical Engineering (ESAT-SCD), Katholieke Universiteit Leuven, Leuven, Belgium.|iMinds Future Health Department, Leuven, Belgium.|Department of Psychology, University of Oldenburg, Oldenburg, Germany.
authors.forename: Maarten
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: De Vos
mesh_terms: D004562:Electrocardiography / Q000379:methods; D004569:Electroencephalography / Q000379:methods; D006339:Heart Rate / Q000502:physiology*; D006801:Humans; D020925:Hypoxia-Ischemia, Brain / Q000503:physiopathology*; D007231:Infant, Newborn; D007363:Intensive Care Units, Neonatal