Abstract
BackgroundHeart rate variability (HRV) biofeedback has a beneficial impact on perceived stress and emotion regulation. However, its impact on brain function is still unclear. In this study, we aimed to investigate the effect of an 8-week HRV-biofeedback intervention on functional brain connectivity in healthy subjects.MethodsHRV biofeedback was carried out in five sessions per week, including four at home and one in our lab. A control group played jump‘n’run games instead of the training. Functional magnetic resonance imaging was conducted before and after the intervention in both groups. To compute resting state functional connectivity (RSFC), we defined regions of interest in the ventral medial prefrontal cortex (VMPFC) and a total of 260 independent anatomical regions for network-based analysis. Changes of RSFC of the VMPFC to other brain regions were compared between groups. Temporal changes of HRV during the resting state recording were correlated to dynamic functional connectivity of the VMPFC.ResultsFirst, we corroborated the role of the VMPFC in cardiac autonomic regulation. We found that temporal changes of HRV were correlated to dynamic changes of prefrontal connectivity, especially to the middle cingulate cortex, the left insula, supplementary motor area, dorsal and ventral lateral prefrontal regions. The biofeedback group showed a drop in heart rate by 5.2 beats/min and an increased SDNN as a measure of HRV by 8.6 ms (18%) after the intervention. Functional connectivity of the VMPFC increased mainly to the insula, the amygdala, the middle cingulate cortex, and lateral prefrontal regions after biofeedback intervention when compared to changes in the control group. Network-based statistic showed that biofeedback had an influence on a broad functional network of brain regions.ConclusionOur results show that increased heart rate variability induced by HRV-biofeedback is accompanied by changes in functional brain connectivity during resting state.
Highlights
The heart is the central organ of the circulatory system that pumps blood through the arterial vessel network in order to provide oxygen for all vital organs
We found that temporal changes of Heart rate variability (HRV) were correlated to dynamic changes of prefrontal connectivity, especially to the middle cingulate cortex, the left insula, supplementary motor area, dorsal and ventral lateral prefrontal regions
Functional connectivity of the ventral medial prefrontal cortex (VMPFC) increased mainly to the insula, the amygdala, the middle cingulate cortex, and lateral prefrontal regions after biofeedback intervention when compared to changes in the control group
Summary
The heart is the central organ of the circulatory system that pumps blood through the arterial vessel network in order to provide oxygen for all vital organs. The activity of the heart is driven by an intrinsic pacemaker called sinoatrial node, it is influenced by environmental demands. The two peripheral branches of the autonomic nervous system (ANS), the parasympathetic and the sympathetic system, modulate the intrinsic activity of the cardiac pacemaker cells in the sinoatrial node. While the sympathetic branch is needed for an adequate stress response, parasympathetic or vagal activation reduces expenditure and promotes health. The heart rate mirrors the resulting homeostasis of an organism influenced by internal and external demands. It is, conceivable that a complex system is needed to orchestrate autonomic cardiac function. Heart rate variability (HRV) biofeedback has a beneficial impact on perceived stress and emotion regulation. We aimed to investigate the effect of an 8-week HRV-biofeedback intervention on functional brain connectivity in healthy subjects
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