Introduction
Familial Mediterranean Fever (FMF) is an autoinflammatory disorder characterized by recurrent fever associated with inflammation of serous membranes. There is no study reporting the assessment of autonomic functions by using heart rate variability (HRV) in children with FMF. HRV is a practical and reliable method for evaluation of autonomic functions. HRV studies have pointed to the presence of autonomic dysfunctions in many autoinflammatory disorders, possible contributing factors to ventricular tachyarrhythmias and sudden cardiac death in these patients.
Objectives
In this study, we investigated possible alterations in cardiac autonomic functions and other probable cardiac effects in children with FMF by HRV analyses and conventional echocardiography.
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Methods
In each patient, it was performed twelve lead electrocardiography (ECG) at 25 mm/s (paper speed), 24 h ambulatory electrocardiographic monitorization (AECG), and transthoracic echocardiography by a Siemens Acuson Sequoia C256 cardiac ultrasonographic scanner, with 2.5- to 3.5-MHz transducers.
Results
Seventy FMF patients and 50 healthy controls were enrolled in the study. It was noted that SDNN (standard deviation of all NN intervals) value was lower in patients with FMF as compared to the control group. Frequency-dependent HRV parameters were similar in both groups. There was no difference in patient and control groups in terms of conventional echocardiographic parameters.
Conclusion
Studies with larger cohorts and more comprehensive methods are required to assess the presence and consequences of possible autonomic dysfunction in children with FMF.
Disclosure of interest
None declared.
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Open Access
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), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly credited. The Creative Commons Public Domain Dedication waiver (
https://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/zero/1.0/
) applies to the data made available in this article, unless otherwise stated.