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Autonomic Cardiac Rhythm Regulation and Temperament in Infancy

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Abstract

The specific features of the cardiac rhythm (CR) and temperament were studied in 92 children aged from 15 to 31 months. The average cardiac interval in a recumbent position and its variability (standard deviation) were determined. The parasympathetic tone (PT) was determined by analyzing the CR wave structure according to CR spectrum power within the range of 0.2 to 1.2 Hz. The sympathetic tone was measured by subtracting the PT contribution from the spectrum power within the range of 0 to 0.2 Hz by means of regression. The children's temperament was measured using their parents' questionnaires. Repeated examination showed the stability of the CR characteristics. The PT was shown to correlate with the children's motor activity (0.52), approaching a new subject (0.39), distraction (–0.34), and the age of entering a nursery (–0.35). The results evidenced a relationship between the parasympathetic tone and the behavioral activity during the first years of life and the role of the parasympathetic tone in physiological regulation of approach/avoidance responses and sustained attention.

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  1. Institute of Physiology, Siberian Division, Russian Academy of Medical Sciences, Novosibirsk, Russia

    E. R. Slobodskaya & Yu. A. Tataurov

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  1. E. R. Slobodskaya
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  2. Yu. A. Tataurov
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Slobodskaya, E.R., Tataurov, Y.A. Autonomic Cardiac Rhythm Regulation and Temperament in Infancy. Human Physiology 27, 205–209 (2001). https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1011083417953

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