36 Validation of a smart textile device for heart rate variability in horses at rest

Abstract

Electrocardiography (ECG) and associated heart rate variability (HRV) are important in the assessment of equine cardiac health, welfare, and performance. Smart textiles have gained popularity as a method to replace standard adhesive electrodes, though limited validation work has been conducted, particularly in veterinary species. Therefore, the objective of this study was to assess the validity of a smart textile ECG device for heart rate (HR) and HRV assessment in horses at rest. Seven mixed-breed, healthy competition horses were recruited for a controlled clinical trial. Horses wore a smart textile ECG device (Skiin Equine) and a standard telemetric device (Televet 100) equipped with adhesive electrodes for simultaneous ECG recordings while unrestrained in stalls for 15 min. Raw data from both devices were analyzed using Kubios Premium to calculate HR and HRV metrics [average and standard deviationof RR intervals, the axial and perpendicular dispersions from the line of identity from the Poincaré plot (SD1 and SD2, respectively), root mean square of successive differences (RMSSD), percentage of successive RR interval differences (pNN50), and oscillations in the very-low frequency (VLF), low-frequency (LF), and high-frequency (HF) bands]. Data were compared using a Bland-Altman analysis with Pearson coefficients. Excellent agreement with small biases were observed between the 2 devices and perfect correlations (r = 1.0, P < 0.0001 for all) were found for all metrics assessed. This study demonstrates that a novel smart textile device can be used interchangeably with the standard telemetric system for assessment of HR and HRV in resting horses.