Evidence map›Paper›PMID 42004907›Full record

ArticleEuropean heart journal open2026

Cardiac autonomic function in elderly patients with and without atrial fibrillation.

Peter Hämmerle, Johannes Schier, Konstantinos D Rizas, Vincent Schlageter, Emel Kaplan, Stefanie Aeschbacher, Marius Rast, Philipp Krisai, Michael Coslovsky, Tobias Reichlin and 13 more

Abstract read
PubMed Full text at PMC Publisher
In one paragraph

Article in European heart journal open, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Not yet cited in PubMed.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
0citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
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.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

0 citing papers in PubMed.

No citing paper in PubMed yet.

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

23 authors.

Peter HämmerleDepartment of Cardiology and Cardiovascular Research Institute Basel, University Hospital Basel, University of Basel, Petersgraben 4, 4031 Basel, Switzerland.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0002-6570-3503
Johannes SchierDepartment of Cardiology and Cardiovascular Research Institute Basel, University Hospital Basel, University of Basel, Petersgraben 4, 4031 Basel, Switzerland.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1738-1295
Konstantinos D RizasMedizinische Klinik und Poliklinik I, Klinikum der Universität München, Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München, Ziemensstrasse 5, 80336 Munich, Germany.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5993-0339
Vincent SchlageterDepartment of Cardiology and Cardiovascular Research Institute Basel, University Hospital Basel, University of Basel, Petersgraben 4, 4031 Basel, Switzerland.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0001-6305-5103
Emel KaplanDepartment of Cardiology and Cardiovascular Research Institute Basel, University Hospital Basel, University of Basel, Petersgraben 4, 4031 Basel, Switzerland.ORCID https://orcid.org/0009-0004-0536-6922
Stefanie AeschbacherDepartment of Cardiology and Cardiovascular Research Institute Basel, University Hospital Basel, University of Basel, Petersgraben 4, 4031 Basel, Switzerland.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0001-8134-2421
Marius RastDepartment of Cardiology and Cardiovascular Research Institute Basel, University Hospital Basel, University of Basel, Petersgraben 4, 4031 Basel, Switzerland.
Philipp KrisaiDepartment of Cardiology and Cardiovascular Research Institute Basel, University Hospital Basel, University of Basel, Petersgraben 4, 4031 Basel, Switzerland.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4367-2363
Michael CoslovskyDepartment of Clinical Research, University of Basel, Spitalstrasse 8/12, 4031 Basel, Switzerland.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0001-7678-7354
Tobias ReichlinDepartment of Cardiology, Inselspital, Bern University Hospital, University of Bern, Freiburgstrasse 20, 3010 Bern, Switzerland.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0002-7197-8415
Julia B BardocziInstitute of Primary Health Care (BIHAM), University Bern, Mittelstrasse 43, 3012 Bern, Switzerland.ORCID https://orcid.org/0009-0001-5914-512X
Nicolas RodondiInstitute of Primary Health Care (BIHAM), University Bern, Mittelstrasse 43, 3012 Bern, Switzerland.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5516-6022
Andreas S MüllerDepartment of Cardiology, Triemli Hospital Zürich, Birmensdorferstrasse 497, 8055 Zürich, Switzerland.
Alain M BernheimDepartment of Cardiology, Triemli Hospital Zürich, Birmensdorferstrasse 497, 8055 Zürich, Switzerland.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5513-3503
Giorgio MoschovitisDivision of Cardiology, Ente Ospedaliero Cantonale (EOC), Cardiocentro Ticino Institute, Regional Hospital of Lugano, Via Tesserete 48, 6900 Lugano, Switzerland.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4043-8061
Maria Luisa De PernaDivision of Cardiology, Ente Ospedaliero Cantonale (EOC), Cardiocentro Ticino Institute, Regional Hospital of Lugano, Via Tesserete 48, 6900 Lugano, Switzerland.
David ConenPopulation Health Research Institute, McMaster University, 237 Barton Street East, Hamilton, Ontario L8L 2X2, Canada.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0002-2459-5251
Christian SticherlingDepartment of Cardiology and Cardiovascular Research Institute Basel, University Hospital Basel, University of Basel, Petersgraben 4, 4031 Basel, Switzerland.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0001-8428-7050
Stefan OsswaldDepartment of Cardiology and Cardiovascular Research Institute Basel, University Hospital Basel, University of Basel, Petersgraben 4, 4031 Basel, Switzerland.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9240-6731
Axel BauerDepartment of Internal Medicine III, Medical University of Innsbruck, Anichstrasse 35, 6020 Innsbruck, Austria.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0001-9201-8555
Felix MahfoudDepartment of Cardiology and Cardiovascular Research Institute Basel, University Hospital Basel, University of Basel, Petersgraben 4, 4031 Basel, Switzerland.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4425-549X
Michael KühneDepartment of Cardiology and Cardiovascular Research Institute Basel, University Hospital Basel, University of Basel, Petersgraben 4, 4031 Basel, Switzerland.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0002-2937-3711
Christine S ZuernDepartment of Cardiology and Cardiovascular Research Institute Basel, University Hospital Basel, University of Basel, Petersgraben 4, 4031 Basel, Switzerland.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0001-6625-284X

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Aims: Cardiac autonomic dysfunction is associated with an adverse prognosis in patients with atrial fibrillation (AF). However, the association of AF itself with cardiac autonomic function (CAF) remains unclear. We aimed to investigate whether CAF, assessed by heart rate variability (HRV), differs across patients with and without AF. Methods and results: We enrolled patients from a prospective multicentre study (Swiss-AF) with a 5-min resting ECG recording in SR or AF without pacing. Cardiac autonomic function was quantified by periodic repolarization dynamics (PRD), a marker of sympathetic activity, and by conventional HRV parameters. We included 2289 patients, 807 (35%) SR patients, 932 (41%) AF patients with SR ECGs (AF-SR), and 550 (24%) AF patients with AF ECGs (AF-AF). Mean age was 74 vs. 70 vs. 75 years; 37%, 31%, and 24% were female. Median PRD was 4.8 deg (IQR 2.6-6.7) in the SR group, 5.1 deg (IQR 2.9-6.9) in the AF-SR group, and 7.0 deg (IQR 5.8-8.4) in the AF-AF group ( Conclusion: Atrial fibrillation was associated with increased sympathetic activity, with the greatest impairment observed in patients during AF, independent of cardiovascular risk factors. Periodic repolarization dynamics may represent a useful marker for the assessment of CAF in AF patients.

Indexed as

Atrial fibrillationCardiac autonomic functionHeart rate variabilityPeriodic repolarization dynamics

Identifiers

PMID42004907
PMCPMC13089404

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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.