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Autonomic function in Kawasaki disease with myocardial infarction: Usefulness of monitoring heart rate variability
Author(s) -
Kikuchi Yutaka,
Sato Yuko,
Ichihashi Kou,
Shiraishi Hirohiko,
Momoi Mariko Y
Publication year - 2003
Publication title -
pediatrics international
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.49
H-Index - 63
eISSN - 1442-200X
pISSN - 1328-8067
DOI - 10.1046/j.1442-200x.2003.01742.x
Subject(s) - medicine , cardiology , kawasaki disease , heart rate variability , myocardial infarction , autonomic function , sudden death , heart rate , artery , blood pressure
Background: Despite anticoagulant therapy, many patients with Kawasaki disease and giant coronary artery aneurysm develop myocardial infarction. These patients have a high risk of sudden death, but the etiology is not clear. We studied autonomic function and the possibility of malignant ventricular arrhythmia through heart rate variability.Methods: We studied six Kawasaki disease patients with myocardial infarction and 16 normal controls. Heart rate variability was investigated using a 24 h electrocardiogram. We assessed the standard deviation from the mean of the normal R‐R intervals (SDNN), the proportion of adjacent R‐R intervals with a difference greater than 50 msec (pNN50) and the root‐mean square of successive R‐R differences as time−domain analysis (rMSSD). We assessed very low‐frequency power, low‐frequency power (LF), high‐frequency power (HF) and the LF/HF ratio in frequency−domain analysis.Results: There was no significant difference in SDNN, but there was a significant difference in pNN50 and rMSSD. Patients with Kawasaki disease showed lower HF and higher LF/HF than normal controls.Conclusion: Our findings suggest that patients with Kawasaki disease and myocardial infarction show decreased vagal activity, which could cause malignant arrhythmia.