Variabilidad de la frecuencia cardiaca (RR) en una serie de casos de pacientes receptores de trasplante cardiaco mayor a un año en la Fundación Cardio Infantil. Bogotá, Colombia. 2019
Thesis
Introduction: cardiac transplant patients present surgical denervation or post-transplant decentralization. The reinnervation process and its physiological implications are still under investigation, as well as the impact on survival and quality of life of these patients. Since the evaluation of the autonomic system is a major area of clinical neurophysiology, we propose the use of heart rate variability analysis in heart transplant patients in a high complexity center in Bogota, Colombia. Objective: to describe the findings of heart rate variability in patients who have received heart transplant in over a year in clinical follow-up at the Fundación Cardio Infantil, Bogotá, Colombia during 2019. Materials and methods: descriptive observational study of case series. All heart transplant patients under cardiology follow-up at Fundación Cardio Infantil, Bogotá, Colombia between 2018 and 2019 who underwent heart rate variability testing were included, using a conventional Cadwell Sierra Wave 10.0 electromyography equipment, and comprised three moments: resting in decubitus, with breathing and during standing. Finally, a spectral analysis of the variability recordings was performed. Results: a total of 18 patients between 2019 and 2020 entered the study. The median age was 50.5 years. Seventeen patients were male and the median time to transplantation was 6 years. For variability testing the resting, deep breathing and standing (mean) indices were 0.93; 0.91 and 0.86 respectively corresponding to values of no cardiac variability or no reinnervation by this method. Medications received by the patients did not impact the result of these values. Conclusion: In the series of cases of patients with cardiac transplantation older than one year in the Fundación CardioInfantil, Bogotá, Colombia, during 2019, the study of heart rate variability by electromyography did not show in any of them changes compatible with variability or reinnervation. The clinical interpretation of this result is not associated with acute or chronic complications at the time of the test.
