ArticlePloS one2021
Heart-rate-variability (HRV), predicts outcomes in COVID-19.
Article in PloS one, 2021. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 68 papers, 4 of them syntheses that pooled 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.
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.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
68 citing papers in PubMed, 4 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 121 citations in OpenAlex.
- Parallel electrophysiological abnormalities due to COVID-19 infection and to Alzheimer's disease and related dementia.Alzheimer's & dementia : the journal of the Alzheimer's Association · 2024Pooled it
- Wearable Devices to Diagnose and Monitor the Progression of COVID-19 Through Heart Rate Variability Measurement: Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.Journal of medical Internet research · 2023Pooled it
- The Impact of SARS-CoV-2 Infection on Heart Rate Variability: A Systematic Review of Observational Studies with Control Groups.International journal of environmental research and public health · 2023Pooled it
- Smartphone as a Disease Screening Tool: A Systematic Review.Sensors (Basel, Switzerland) · 2022Pooled it
- Feasibility and acceptance of transdermal auricular vagus nerve stimulation using a TENS device in females suffering from long COVID fatigue.Wiener klinische Wochenschrift · 2025Trial
- Significance and Usefulness of High-Resolution 24-h Electrocardiographic Parameters in Patients With Coronavirus Disease 2019 After Admission: A Prospective Cohort Study.Journal of arrhythmia · 2026Article
- Exploring heart rate variability as a biomarker for frailty: A narrative review.European journal of clinical investigation · 2026Review
- Observational
- New music combination promotes neuroimmune homeostasis and stress relief.Frontiers in human neuroscience · 2026Article
- Cardiac Autonomic Dysfunction and Increased Oxidative Stress in Conventional Cigarettes and E-Cigarettes: Heart Rate Variability as a Cardiovascular Predictor.Antioxidants (Basel, Switzerland) · 2025Review
- Association of non-linear dynamics of heart rate variability with all-cause mortality in patients with sarcoidosis.Sarcoidosis, vasculitis, and diffuse lung diseases : official journal of WASOG · 2025Article
- Heart Rate Variability Applications in Medical Specialties: A Narrative Review.Applied psychophysiology and biofeedback · 2025Review
- Classification of Individuals With COVID-19 and Post-COVID-19 Condition and Healthy Controls Using Heart Rate Variability: Machine Learning Study With a Near-Real-Time Monitoring Component.Journal of medical Internet research · 2025Article
- Analyzing Heart Rate Variability for COVID-19 ICU Mortality Prediction Using Continuous Signal Processing Techniques.Journal of clinical medicine · 2025Article
- Heart rate variability in female soccer players, before, during, and after a COVID-19 positive test.Scientific reports · 2025Article
- Attenuated cardiac autonomic function in patients with long-COVID with impaired orthostatic hemodynamics.Clinical autonomic research : official journal of the Clinical Autonomic Research Society · 2025Article
- Left vs. Right Bundle Branch Block in COVID-19 Patients: Distinct Clinical Presentations and Prognostic Implications.Journal of clinical medicine · 2025Article
- Observational
- Cholesterol, triglycerides, HDL, and nitric oxide as determinants of resting heart rate variability in non-hospitalized mild post-COVID individuals: a cross-sectional study.BMC cardiovascular disorders · 2025Article
- Impact of COVID-19 on heart rate variability in post-COVID individuals compared to a control group.Scientific reports · 2024Article
8 more citing papers are in PubMed but not listed here.
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
8 authors at 3 institutions in 2 countries.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
backgroundPatients with COVID-19 present with a variety of clinical manifestations, ranging from mild or asymptomatic disease to severe illness and death. Whilst previous studies have clarified these and several other aspects of COVID-19, one of the ongoing challenges regarding COVID-19 is to determine which patients are at risk of adverse outcomes of COVID-19 infection. It is hypothesized that this is the result of insufficient inhibition of the immune response, with the vagus nerve being an important neuro-immuno-modulator of inflammation. Vagus nerve activity can be non-invasively indexed by heart-rate-variability (HRV). Therefore, we aimed to assess the prognostic value of HRV, as a surrogate marker for vagus nerve activity, in predicting mortality and intensive care unit (ICU) referral, in patients hospitalized with COVID-19.
methodsA retrospective cohort study including all consecutive patients (n = 271) diagnosed and hospitalized with COVID-19 between March 2020 and May 2020, without a history of cardiac arrhythmias (including atrial and ventricular premature contractions), pacemaker, or current bradycardia (heart rate <50 bpm) or tachycardia (heart rate >110 bpm). HRV was based on one 10s ECG recorded at admission. 3-week survival and ICU referral were examined.
resultsHRV indexed as standard deviation of normal to normal heartbeat intervals (SDNN) predicted survival (H.R. = 0.53 95%CI: 0.31-0.92). This protective role was observed only in patients aged 70 years and older, not in younger patients. HRV below median value also predicted ICU referral within the first week of hospitalization (H.R = 0.51, 95%CI: 0.29-0.90, P = 0.021).
conclusionHigher HRV predicts greater chances of survival, especially in patients aged 70 years and older with COVID-19, independent of major prognostic factors. Low HRV predicts ICU indication and admission in the first week after hospitalization.
Indexed as
Identifiers
What OpenQuestion holds
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.