title: Reference ranges for short-term heart rate variability measures in individuals free of cardiovascular disease: The Multi-Ethnic Study of Atherosclerosis (MESA).
abstract: Normative values for heart rate variability (HRV) measures from 10-s electrocardiograms (ECG) have not been defined.
  
  
  
  We reported borderline abnormal (<5th percentile) and abnormal (<2nd percentile) values of standard deviation of all normal-to-normal R-R intervals (SDNN) and root mean square of successive differences between normal-to-normal R-R intervals (rMSSD) from 10-s ECGs in 1175 participants (mean age=59±10; 59% female; 47% white) ≥45years of age from the Multi-Ethnic Study of Atherosclerosis (MESA) who were free of cardiovascular disease (CVD) and CVD risk factors. We validated the prognostic significance of these measures in a subset of the MESA cohort with complete data.
  
  
  
  Borderline abnormal and abnormal SDNN and rMSSD varied by sex and race. Borderline abnormal and abnormal SDNN and rMSSD were associated with an increased risk of CVD and all-cause mortality.
  
  
  
  The references ranges provided in this report will guide future research using these common HRV parameters.
authors.affiliation: Department of Medicine, Division of Cardiology, Emory University School of Medicine, Atlanta, GA, USA. Electronic address: wesley.oneal@emory.edu.
authors.forename: Wesley T
authors.initials: WT
authors.lastname: O'Neal
authors.affiliation: Department of Medicine, Division of Cardiology, University of Minnesota Medical School, Minneapolis, MN, USA.
authors.forename: Lin Y
authors.initials: LY
authors.lastname: Chen
authors.affiliation: Department of Medicine, Division of Cardiology, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA.
authors.forename: Saman
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Nazarian
authors.affiliation: Department of Internal Medicine, Section on Cardiology, Wake Forest School of Medicine, Winston-Salem, NC, USA; Epidemiological Cardiology Research Center (EPICARE), Department of Epidemiology and Prevention, Wake Forest School of Medicine, Winston-Salem, NC, USA.
authors.forename: Elsayed Z
authors.initials: EZ
authors.lastname: Soliman
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D004562:Electrocardiography / Q000592:standards* / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D005260:Female; D006339:Heart Rate / Q000502:physiology*; D000070276:Heart Rate Determination / Q000592:standards* / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D012016:Reference Values; D015203:Reproducibility of Results; D012680:Sensitivity and Specificity; D014481:United States / Q000208:ethnology
keywords: Electrocardiogram; Epidemiology; Heart rate variability