HEART RATE VARIABILITY IN OFFSPRING OF NORMOTENSIVE AND HYPERTENSIVE PARENTS: A COMPARATIVE STUDY

Objective: This study aims to evaluate the differences in heart rate variability (HRV), a biomarker of autonomic nervous system, between offspring of normotensive and hypertensive parents to understand the genetic predisposition of autonomic dysfunction.

Methods: This study was a cross-sectional observational study.Two groups of healthy adults, offspring of parents with hypertension (n = 50) and offspring of parents with normal blood pressure (n = 50). Short-term HRV was measured using 5-minute electrocardiogram (ECG). HRV indices such as time and frequency domainwere measured. Data were compared by using independent t-tests, with p < 0.05 being considered as statistically significant.

Results:The offspring of parents with hypertension showed significantly lower HRV, with SDNN (30.5 ± 8.2 ms) compared to offspring of parents with normal blood pressure (45.2 ± 7.1 ms, p < 0.001). RMSSD also was significantly lower in offspring of hypertensive group. Low-frequency (LF) power was higher in offspring of parents with hypertension,while high-frequency (HF) power was significantly reduced in them compared to the normotensive group. The LF:HF ratio was higher in offspring of parents with hypertension (2.80 ± 0.85) compared to the normotensive group (1.40 ± 0.60, p < 0.001), indicating sympathovagal imbalance.

Conclusion: Offspring of parents with hypertension hadlower HRV, suggesting autonomic dysfunction even in the absence of clinical hypertension. These findings emphasize the potential role of genetic predisposition in the early onset of autonomic dysregulation Further studies are required to understand mechanisms contributing to these differences in HRV.