Short-term effects of air pollution on heart rate variability in senior adults in Steubenville, Ohio.

Abstract

We examined the association between ambient air pollution levels and heart rate variability (HRV) in a panel study of 32 subjects. We used linear mixed models to analyze the effects of fine particles (PM2.5), sulfate (SO4), elemental carbon (EC), and gases on log-transformed standard deviation of normal RR intervals (SDNN), mean square of differences between adjacent RR intervals (r-MSSD), and high- and low-frequency power (HF, LF). An interquartile range (IQR) increase of 5.1 mug/m in SO4 on the previous day was associated with a decrease of -3.3% SDNN (95% confidence = -6.0% to -0.5%), -5.6% r-MSSD (-10.7% to -0.2%), and -10.3% HF (-19.5% to -0.1%). Associations with total PM2.5 were similar. HRV was not associated with EC, NO2, SO2, or O3. In addition to traffic-related particles, elevated levels of sulfate particles may also adversely affect autonomic function.