RHRVEasy

RHRVEasy automates heart rate variability (HRV) analysis by computing up to 31 time, frequency, and non-linear indices and performing statistical tests to identify differences between populations.

Key Features:

• Automated HRV Index Computation: Calculates up to 31 HRV time, frequency, and non-linear indices, including automated computation of non-linear indices that typically require manual intervention.
• Statistical Hypothesis Testing: Conducts hypothesis tests to find differences between populations and adjusts significance levels when necessary.
• Post-hoc Analysis: Performs post-hoc analysis to identify the specific differing groups when more than two populations are compared.
• Data Loading and Preprocessing: Loads and preprocesses heart rate data from a list of folders, each containing all recordings of the same population.

Scientific Applications:

• Population Comparison Studies: Identifies statistically significant differences in HRV indices between distinct populations, such as healthy subjects and congestive heart failure patients.
• Large-Scale HRV Analysis: Streamlines HRV analysis for large studies by automating the complete workflow from data loading through statistical testing.
• Non-linear HRV Index Analysis: Enables automated computation of non-linear HRV indices for characterizing physiological states and identifying potential markers of underlying pathologies.

Methodology:

RHRVEasy takes as input a list of folders, each containing all recordings of the same population. The package loads and preprocesses heart rate data, computes HRV indices, conducts hypothesis tests with significance level adjustment if necessary, and performs post-hoc analysis for multiple groups. Validation was performed using databases of healthy subjects and congestive heart failure patients, with additional validation groups constructed by random sampling.