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Clinical Autonomic Dysfunction pp 19–26Cite as

History of Parasympathetic and Sympathetic Monitoring

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Abstract

Historically, heart rate variability (HRV) has been recognized as the primary method for noninvasive monitoring of the autonomic nervous system (ANS), including its parasympathetic and sympathetic branches. HRV, however, is a single independent measure of heartbeat intervals (HBI). Yet the ANS is a system with two independent components. As a measure of a system with two independent components, HRV fails a fundamental law of mathematics. Therefore, it is merely a gross measure of total ANS function. More recently, beat-to-beat blood pressure (btbBP) has been developed in an attempt to better specify sympathetic activity. Again, btbBP fails the fundamental law of math. It is still just based on HBIs and therefore a gross measure of the ANS. More information is needed. This information historically came in the form of symptoms. Yet, as was introduced in the previous chapter, symptoms often are late in the progression of autonomic dysfunction and also often require assumption. MIT and Harvard researchers understood that a second, independent measure was required to clear the ambiguity and the need for assumption. These researchers determined and validated that the second measure is respiratory activity. This chapter introduces the history of confusion caused by HRV and perpetuated by btbBP and resolves the issue with the second independent measure of respiratory activity.

Keywords

  • Heart Rate Variability
  • Autonomic Nervous System
  • Respiratory Sinus Arrhythmia
  • Parasympathetic Activity
  • Vagal Activity

These keywords were added by machine and not by the authors. This process is experimental and the keywords may be updated as the learning algorithm improves.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Autonomic Laboratory Department of Cardiology, Drexel University College of Medicine, Philadelphia, PA, USA

    Joseph Colombo PhD

  2. ANSAR Medical Technologies, Inc., Philadelphia, PA, USA

    Joseph Colombo PhD

  3. Department of Medicine, Captain James A. Lovell Federal Health Care Center, North Chicago, IL, USA

    Rohit Arora MD, FACC, FAHA, FACP, FSCAI

  4. Department of Cardiology, The Chicago Medical School, North Chicago, IL, USA

    Rohit Arora MD, FACC, FAHA, FACP, FSCAI

  5. Department of Cardiology, Hahnemann Hospital Drexel University College of Medicine, Philadelphia, PA, USA

    Nicholas L. DePace MD, FACC

  6. Department of Medicine, Eastern Virginia Medical School Strelitz Diabetes Research Center, Norfolk, VA, USA

    Aaron I. Vinik MD, PhD, FCP, MACP

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Colombo, J., Arora, R., DePace, N.L., Vinik, A.I. (2015). History of Parasympathetic and Sympathetic Monitoring. In: Clinical Autonomic Dysfunction. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-07371-2_2

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