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J Neurol Neurosurg Psychiatry 2005;76:1382-1386 doi:10.1136/jnnp.2004.053777
  • Paper

Suppressed circadian heart rate dynamics in temporal lobe epilepsy

  1. E Ronkainen1,
  2. H Ansakorpi1,
  3. H V Huikuri2,
  4. V V Myllylä1,
  5. J I T Isojärvi1,
  6. J T Korpelainen1
  1. 1Departments of Neurology and Medicine, University of Oulu, Oulu, Finland
  2. 2Division of Cardiology, University of Oulu, Oulu, Finland
  1. Correspondence to:
 Dr E Ronkainen
 Department of Neurology, P.O.Box 5000, FIN-90014 University of Oulu, Finland; eronkainstudent.oulu.fi
  • Received 10 September 2004
  • Accepted 16 January 2004
  • Revised 2 December 2004

Abstract

Objectives: To measure interictal circadian rhythm of heart rate (HR) variability in patients with temporal lobe epilepsy (TLE) using a 24 hour ECG recording.

Methods: Various conventional and dynamic fractal measures of HR variability were analysed in 17 patients with refractory TLE, 20 patients with well controlled TLE, and 37 healthy age and sex matched control subjects.

Results: The SD of all RR intervals (p<0.01), the measured power spectral components of HR variability (low frequency power (p<0.01), high frequency power (p<0.05)), and the SD1 (p<0.05) and SD2 (p<0.01) Poincaré two dimensional vector analysis measurements were suppressed in the patients. This suppression was observed during both day and night time; however, it was more pronounced at night, and nocturnal increase in HR variability usually seen in the normal population could not be detected in the patients. The HR variability measures did not correlate with the duration of epilepsy, the age of the patients, or with the anti-epileptic drugs used.

Conclusion: TLE was associated with reduced HR variability, which was more pronounced during night than day, and the nocturnal increase in HR variability was abolished in patients with TLE. The alteration in autonomic regulation of HR variability was similar in patients with both refractory and well controlled TLE.

Footnotes

  • Competing interests: none declared

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