Abstract
In healthy, young individuals, a reduction in cardiovascular output and a shift from sympathetic to parasympathetic (vagal) dominance is observed from wake into stages of nocturnal and daytime sleep. This cardiac autonomic profile, measured by heart rate variability (HRV), has been associated with significant benefits for cardiovascular health. Aging is associated with decreased nighttime sleep quality and lower parasympathetic activity during both sleep and resting. However, it is not known whether age-related dampening of HRV extends to daytime sleep, diminishing the cardiovascular benefits of naps in the elderly. Here, we investigated this question by comparing the autonomic activity profile between young and older healthy adults during a daytime nap and a similar period of wakefulness (quiet wake; QW). For each condition, from the electrocardiogram (ECG), we obtained beat-to-beat HRV intervals (RR), root mean square of successive differences between adjacent heart-beat-intervals (RMSSD), high-frequency (HF), low-frequency (LF) power, and total power (TP), HF normalized units (HFnu), and the LF/HF ratio. As previously reported, young subjects showed a parasympathetic dominance during NREM, compared with REM, prenap rest, and WASO. Moreover, older, compared to younger, adults showed significantly lower vagally mediated HRV (measured by RMSSD, HF, HFnu) during NREM. Interestingly, however, no age-related differences were detected during prenap rest or QW. Altogether, our findings suggest a sleep-specific reduction in parasympathetic modulation that is unique to NREM sleep in older adults.
Document Type
Article
Publication Date
10-13-2020
Digital Object Identifier (DOI)
https://doi.org/10.1111/psyp.13701
Funding Information
This work was supported by the National Institutes of Health R01 (AG046646) and (AG061355).
Repository Citation
Chen, Pin-Chun; Sattari, Negin; Whitehurst, Lauren N.; and Mednick, Sara C., "Age-Related Losses in Cardiac Autonomic Activity during a Daytime Nap" (2020). Psychology Faculty Publications. 212.
https://uknowledge.uky.edu/psychology_facpub/212
Notes/Citation Information
Published in Psychophysiology, v. 58, issue 7, e13701.
© 2020 The Authors
This is an open access article under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs License, which permits use and distribution in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited, the use is non-commercial and no modifications or adaptations are made.