Review published: 28 September 2017 doi: 10.3389/fpubh.2017.00258
An Overview of Heart Rate variability Metrics and Norms Fred Shaffer1* and J. P. Ginsberg2 Center for Applied Psychophysiology, Truman State University, Kirksville, MO, United States, William Jennings Bryan Dorn VA Medical Center (VHA), Columbia, SC, United States
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Edited by: Joav Merrick, Ministry of Social Affairs, Israel Reviewed by: Angela J. Grippo, Northern Illinois University, United States Gillian Bartlett, McGill University, Canada *Correspondence: Fred Shaffer
[email protected] Specialty section: This article was submitted to Family Medicine and Primary Care, a section of the journal Frontiers in Public Health Received: 26 June 2017 Accepted: 11 September 2017 Published: 28 September 2017 Citation: Shaffer F and Ginsberg JP (2017) An Overview of Heart Rate Variability Metrics and Norms. Front. Public Health 5:258. doi: 10.3389/fpubh.2017.00258
Healthy biological systems exhibit complex patterns of variability that can be described by mathematical chaos. Heart rate variability (HRV) consists of changes in the time intervals between consecutive heartbeats called interbeat intervals (IBIs). A healthy heart is not a metronome. The oscillations of a healthy heart are complex and constantly changing, which allow the cardiovascular system to rapidly adjust to sudden physical and psychological challenges to homeostasis. This article briefly reviews current perspectives on the mechanisms that generate 24 h, short-term (~5 min), and ultra-short-term (
