Do Respiratory Sinus Arrhythmia and Respiratory Phase Durations Impact Heart Rate Variability Asymmetry in Healthy Subjects?

Asymmetry is a peculiar aspect of the heart period (HP) variability. Although robustly detected in healthy subjects and reduced with aging, the origin of the HP variability asymmetry (HPVA) is still partially unknown. In this work, we tested the hypothesis that the asymmetry of the respiratory pattern with a ratio (E/I) of expiratory (EXP) to inspiratory (INSP) phase larger than 1 and the presence of respiratory sinus arrhythmia (RSA) could play...