Heart rate variability in juvenile systemic lupus erythematosus patients

Özet

Although neurological involvement has been well recognized in patientswith systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE), autonomic nervous system (ANS)involvement has rarely been studied, and has shown conflicting results. The aimof this study was to evaluate the ANS functions by using heart rate variability(HRV) in juvenile patients with SLE. Sixteen juvenile-onset SLE patients and16 healthy controls were enrolled in the study. All participants underwent24-hour Holter electrocardiogram monitoring and HRV indices were assessed.The SLE disease activity index (SLEDAI) score was used to assess the diseaseactivity. We analyzed the correlation between disease duration, the SLEDAIscore, and the HRV domains. Overall HRV was diminished in patients withSLE compared to controls. There were negative correlations between dayand night RMSSD (root-mean-square of the successive normal sinus NNinterval differences) and PNN50 (percentage of successive normal sinusNN intervals >50 ms) values, and SLEDAI (r= -0.588 p=0.017; r= - 0.607p= 0.013; r= -0.498 p=0.049; r= -0.597 p=0.015, respectively). There werepositive correlations between both day and night LF/HF values and SLEDAI(r=0.766 p=0.001; r=0.635 p=0.008, respectively). The results suggest thatautonomic dysfunction exists in juvenile patients with SLE. As these childrenare at increased risk for cardiovascular disease, they need to be assessed forthe development of autonomic dysfunction.