Abstract
OBJECTIVE: To study heart rate variability (HRV) in neonates with non-benign tachyarrhythmia (NNTA) and the role of automatic nervous system (ANS) in NNTA. METHODS: The neonates who were admitted to the Department of Neonatology, the Second Xiangya Hospital of Central South University, from January 2010 to June 2018 and were diagnosed with NNTA were enrolled as the NNTA group, and the neonates with sinus rhythm or accidental premature beats on ambulatory electrocardiography were enrolled as the control group. Each group was further subdivided into preterm and term subgroups. A retrospective analysis was performed for their clinical data. RESULTS: A total of 27 NNTA neonates were enrolled, accounting for 0.28% (27/9 632) of all neonates hospitalized during the same period of time, and 53 neonates were enrolled in the control group. Compared with the preterm and term control subgroups, the preterm NNTA and term NNTA subgroups had a significant increase in the standard deviation of average RR interval (P<0.05). CONCLUSIONS: Immature and unbalanced ANS function may play an important role in the development and progression of NNTA.