Assessing the feasibility of heart rate variability as an objective indicator of anxiety in older adults with dementia living in care homes


Author: Milena A Quinci1,2, Arlene J Astell3,4,5

Affiliation: <sup>1</sup> School of Psychology & Clinical Sciences, University of Reading, Reading, RG6 7BE, UK.

<sup>2</sup> Centre for Cognitive & Brain Health, Northeastern University, Boston, MA, USA.

<sup>3</sup> School of Psychology & Clinical Sciences, University of Reading, Reading, RG6 7BE, UK. a.astell@reading.ac.uk.

<sup>4</sup> Department of Occupational Sciences & Occupational Therapy and Department of Psychiatry, University of Toronto, Toronto, Canada. a.astell@reading.ac.uk.

<sup>5</sup> KITE, University Health Network, Toronto, Canada. a.astell@reading.ac.uk.
Conference/Journal: BMC Res Notes
Date published: 2021 Feb 5
Other:
 Volume ID: 14   ,  Issue ID: 1   ,  Pages: 48   ,  Special Notes: doi: 10.1186/s13104-021-05458-2.   ,  Word Count: 159  
    Objective:

Anxiety is reportedly prevalent in older adults with dementia living in care homes and, within this population, is most often assessed through caregiver reports. Heart rate variability (HRV) is a physiological indicator of autonomic function, whereby reduced vagally-mediated HRV is associated with a variety of anxiety symptoms and disorders. This study evaluates the feasibility of collecting HRV data within this population, presents HRV data for older adults with dementia living in a care home, and examines HRV in the context of self-reported anxiety. These data were collected during a larger study examining an exercise intervention.



Results:

HRV data, in the form of log-transformed root mean square of the successive differences (lnRMSSD), were in line with transformed data from previous research. These data provide a promising direction for the use of wrist-worn devices in future HRV research with people living with dementia in care homes.



Keywords: Anxiety; Dementia; heart rate variability; long-term care.



PMID: 33546710 DOI: 10.1186/s13104-021-05458-2