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Objective To identify the differences in cardiac autonomic control between older people with good and poor sleep quality. Material and Methods This is a cross-sectional study with 40 older people aged ≥ 60 years, registered at a community health center in Petrolina, Pernambuco, Brazil. The sleep quality was assessed with the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI). To assess heart rate variability (HRV), the RR intervals (RRI) were recorded for 10 min with a validated smartphone app and a wireless transmitter Polar H7 positioned on the patient's chest. The HRV parameters were calculated with Kubios HRV, and the data were analyzed in SPSS. Subjects with good and poor sleep quality (PSQI >5) were compared with the Mann-Whitney U test. Results A total of 31 older people were included in the final analysis, with 18 (58.1%) of them having poor sleep quality. Older people with good sleep quality have similar cardiac autonomic control to those with poor sleep quality. The medians of time (mean RRI, pNN50, SDNN, and RMSSD) and frequency-domain HRV parameters (LFms², LFnu, HFms², HFnu, and LF/HF ratio) were statistically similar (p > .05) in older people with good and poor sleep quality. According to the effect size, the HRV indicators were slightly better among those with good sleep quality. Conclusion There were no statistical differences in cardiac autonomic control between older people with good and poor sleep quality. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: This study aimed to compare cardiorespiratory effects in men with restrictive lung disorders, according to the abdominal circumference (AC), undergoing respiratory physical therapy. Materials and methods: Quasi-experimental study with a sample 26 men with forced vital capacity (FVC)pred <80%, who were divided into two groups: AC (cm) < 102 (ACfree_risk) and ≥ 102 (ACrisk). Heart rate variability (HRV), peripheral oxygen saturation (SpO2), blood pressure (BP), lung capacities and maximal expiratory pressure (PEmax) were measured at rest (T1), immediately after physical therapy intervention (T2), which consisted of breathing exercises for pulmonary expansion, active kinesiotherapy to lower and upper limbs, and after 30 min (T3). The statistical tests used were ANOVA and independent t tests (p <.05). Results: ACrisk had the highest values for slow vital capacity (SVC), inspiratory capacity (IC), PEmax and systolic BP (p <.05); there was an increase in HRV (T2), SpO2 (%) [95.0 (2.5) to 96.6 (1.4)] and IC (l) [2.4 (0.5) to 2.7 (0.6)] (T3). Conclusions: Men with restrictive respiratory disorders and AC ≥102 has higher values in the inspiratory capacities and arterial pressure level, and benefit from respiratory physiotherapy by differential increase in IC. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: The purpose of this study was to evaluate the accuracy of heel rise test (HRT) for assessing the functional capacity (FC) of individuals with peripheral arterial disease (PAD) and determine the best sensitivity cutoff point to stratify individuals with worse FC., Methods: This retrospective methodological study included adults of both sexes diagnosed with PAD and intermittent claudication. Individuals performed the HRT (number of plantar flexions, execution time, and execution rate were recorded) and the incremental shuttle walking test (distance walked was recorded). The accuracy analysis and the determination of the sensitivity of the HRT in assessing FC were performed by the receiver operating characteristic curve based on the following incremental shuttle walking test cutoff point: 380 meters. Alpha was set at 5%., Results: In this study, 120 individuals were included (64 ± 9.65 years). The number of plantar flexions showed better accuracy for FC assessment (area under the curve, 0.78; 95% CI, 0.65-0.90). The best sensitivity cutoff to stratify the individuals with the worst FC was 63 plantar flexions (sensitivity, 0.952; specificity, 0.562)., Conclusion: The HRT showed good accuracy, adequate sensitivity, and acceptable specificity in assessing the FC of individuals with PAD. The best sensitivity cutoff point to stratify individuals with worse FC was 63 plantar flexions., (Copyright © 2024. Published by Elsevier Inc.)