Evidence map›Paper›PMID 25541185›Full record

ArticleBrain, behavior, and immunity2015

Heart rate variability predicts levels of inflammatory markers: Evidence for the vagal anti-inflammatory pathway.

Timothy M Cooper, Paula S McKinley, Teresa E Seeman, Tse-Hwei Choo, Seonjoo Lee, Richard P Sloan

Registry-linked trialOpen access · greenAbstract read
In one paragraph

Article in Brain, behavior, and immunity, 2015. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. It is linked to trial NCT07443072 (Heart Rate Variability and Processed EEG Features as Predictors of Postoperative Outcomes After Cranial Neurosurgery - A Prospective Observational Study in the Post-Anesthesia Care Unit), which is not on this map. Cited by 71 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
71citing papers in PubMed
4.3field-weighted citation impact, top 5% of its field
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

NCT07443072 recruitingnot on this mapstarted 2026, after this paper: background citation

Heart Rate Variability and Processed EEG Features as Predictors of Postoperative Outcomes After Cranial Neurosurgery - A Prospective Observational Study in the Post-Anesthesia Care Unit

TypeobservationalSponsorFondazione I.R.C.C.S. Istituto Neurologico Carlo BestaRan2026 to 2027Enrolled300ConditionsCranial Neurosurgery
3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

71 citing papers in PubMed, 156 citations in OpenAlex.

  1. Trial
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  3. Trial
  4. Diabetic Autonomic Neuropathy and Impaired Inflammatory Reflex.Endocrinology, diabetes & metabolism · 2026
    Review
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11 more citing papers are in PubMed but not listed here.

4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

6 authors at 3 institutions in 1 country.

Timothy M CooperColumbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons, Columbia University Medical Center, New York, NY, United States. Electronic address: tmc2161@columbia.edu.
Paula S McKinleyDepartment of Psychiatry, Columbia University Medical Center, New York, NY, United States; New York State Psychiatric Institute, New York, NY, United States. Electronic address: pm491@cumc.columbia.edu.
Teresa E SeemanDepartment of Medicine, David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA, Los Angeles, CA, United States. Electronic address: tseeman@mednet.ucla.edu.
Tse-Hwei ChooNew York State Psychiatric Institute, New York, NY, United States. Electronic address: tjc2143@columbia.edu.
Seonjoo LeeDepartment of Psychiatry, Columbia University Medical Center, New York, NY, United States; New York State Psychiatric Institute, New York, NY, United States. Electronic address: sl3670@columbia.edu.
Richard P SloanDepartment of Psychiatry, Columbia University Medical Center, New York, NY, United States; New York State Psychiatric Institute, New York, NY, United States. Electronic address: rps7@columbia.edu.
Columbia University Irving Medical Center · USNew York Psychoanalytic Society and Institute · USUniversity of California, Los Angeles · US

Funding

STATISTICS COREP01AG020166 · NIA · UNIVERSITY OF WISCONSIN-MADISON · PI RYFF, CAROL D. · 2002 to 2015
$50.6M
ZDV &3TC NEVIRAPINE COMBINATION THERAPY IN HIV 1 INFECTED INFANTS &M01RR000865 · NCRR · UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA LOS ANGELES · PI WASHINGTON, ARNOLD E. · 1985 to 2011
$43.4M
Institutional Clinical and Translational Science AwardUL1TR000427 · NCATS · UNIVERSITY OF WISCONSIN-MADISON · PI DREZNER, MARC KENNETH · 2012 to 2016
$32.2M
WIHS INTENSIVE PHARMACOKINETIC STUDY (IPS)M01RR023942 · NCRR · GEORGETOWN UNIVERSITY · PI FEDEROFF, HOWARD J. · 2007 to 2009
$6.9M
NCATS NIH HHS UL1 TR000427NCATS NIH HHS UL1TR000427NCRR NIH HHS M01 RR000865NCRR NIH HHS M01-RR00865NCRR NIH HHS M01 RR023942NCRR NIH HHS M01-RR023942NIA NIH HHS P01 AG020166NIA NIH HHS P01-AG020166
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Evidence from numerous animal models shows that vagal activity regulates inflammatory responses by decreasing cytokine release. Heart rate variability (HRV) is a reliable index of cardiac vagal regulation and should be inversely related to levels of inflammatory markers. Inflammation is also regulated by sympathetic inputs, but only one previous paper controlled for this. In a larger and more representative sample, we sought to replicate those results and examine potential sex differences in the relationship between HRV and inflammatory markers. Using data from the MIDUS II study, we analyzed the relationship between 6 inflammatory markers and both HF-HRV and LF-HRV. After controlling for sympathetic effects measured by urinary norepinephrine as well as a host of other factors, LF-HRV was found to be inversely associated with fibrinogen, CRP and IL-6, while HF-HRV was inversely associated with fibrinogen and CRP. We did not observe consistent sex differences. These results support the existence of the vagal anti-inflammatory pathway and suggest that it has similar effects in men and women.

Indexed as

Heart RateBiomarkersC-Reactive ProteinFemaleFibrinogenHumansInflammationInflammation MediatorsInterleukin-6MaleMiddle AgedNorepinephrineSex FactorsSympathetic Nervous SystemVagus NerveBiomarkersC-Reactive ProteinFibrinogenInflammation MediatorsInterleukin-6NorepinephrineHeart rate variabilityInflammationUrinary norepinephrineVagal anti-inflammatory pathway

Identifiers

PMID25541185
PMCPMC4476948
OpenAlexW2108231746

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
LicenceTDM
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.