Abstract
BackgroundCardiovascular disease is one of the leading causes of death globally with hypertension being a primary cause of premature death from this disease process. Individuals with a family history of cardiovascular disease and hypertension are at a greater risk for developing the same sequela. Autonomic cardiac control is important in the level of cardiac function. One intervention that is effective in improving cardiovascular function is heart rate variability biofeedback training. The purpose of our study was to determine the effectiveness of heart rate biofeedback training on HRV and blood pressure in individuals with a family history of cardiovascular disease.MethodsThirty-four participants (76.5% female, 22.7 ± 4.3 years) completed a baseline assessment and training using an established short-term HRV protocol followed by two weeks of at-home paced breathing employing a smartphone application. The participants were then reassessed in a biofeedback clinic.ResultsThe participants physiological measures showed a significant increase in means between pre and post intervention of SDNN (t (32) = 2.177, p =.037) and TP, (t (32) = 2.327 p = .026). Correlation noted a medium effect on diastolic blood pressure and high frequency heart rate variability, F, r = .41, n =33, p < .05. A multiple regression with all predictor variables in the model found no significance with diastolic and systolic blood pressure.ConclusionsThe findings from this pilot study demonstrated that a two-week paced breathing intervention may assist in reducing heart rate and diastolic blood pressure while improving heart rate variability.
Highlights
Cardiovascular disease is one of the leading causes of death globally with hypertension being a primary cause of premature death from this disease process
In our sample of young adults with a family history of cardiovascular disease (CVD), the results indicated an improvement in Heart rate variability (HRV) from baseline to after Heart Rate Variability Biofeedback Training (HRV-BT) training as demonstrated by an improvement in standard deviation of N to N (SDNN) and Total power (TP)
With the current consideration of blood pressure (BP) guidelines having the greatest impact on younger patients, careful consideration and future research should focus on those at-risk due to added nonmodifiable risk components, such as a positive family history of CV disease
Summary
Cardiovascular disease is one of the leading causes of death globally with hypertension being a primary cause of premature death from this disease process. Individuals with a family history of cardiovascular disease and hypertension are at a greater risk for developing the same sequela. One intervention that is effective in improving cardiovascular function is heart rate variability biofeedback training. The purpose of our study was to determine the effectiveness of heart rate biofeedback training on HRV and blood pressure in individuals with a family history of cardiovascular disease. [8,9,10] Seminal (2022) 28:2 studies include the Framingham Heart Study [11], which explored BP in normotensive and untreated individuals with hypertension over 30 years, and the Veterans Administration Cooperative Study, [12] which emphasized the need for early systematic efforts to screen those at risk for developing HTN due to the asymptomatic nature of the disease. Progress has been made in the prevention of HTN, it continues to be a major public health challenge for those at-risk, warranting the need to explore new and early selfmanagement interventions
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