TY - JOUR A1 - Buchhorn, Reiner A1 - Baumann, Christoph A1 - Willaschek, Christian T1 - Pathophysiological mechanisms of bradycardia in patients with anorexia nervosa JF - Health Science Reports N2 - Background The purpose of this investigation was to examine heart rate variability (HRV), interbeat interval (IBI), and their interrelationship in healthy controls, bradycardic hyperpolarization‐activated cyclic nucleotide‐gated channel 4 (HCN4) mutation carriers, and patients with anorexia nervosa (AN). We tested the hypothesis that neural mechanisms cause bradycardia in patients with AN. Therefore, we assumed that saturation of the HRV/IBI relationship as a consequence of sustained parasympathetic control of the sinus node is exclusively detectable in patients with AN. Methods Patients with AN between the ages of 12 and 16 years admitted to our hospital due to malnutrition were grouped and included in the present investigation (N = 20). A matched‐pair group with healthy children and adolescents was created. Groups were matched for age and sex. A 24‐hour Holter electrocardiography (ECG) was performed in controls and patients. More specifically, all patients underwent two 24‐hour Holter ECG examinations (admission; refeeding treatment). Additionally, the IBI was recorded during the night in HCN4 mutation carriers (N = 4). HRV parameters were analyzed in 5‐minute sequences during the night and plotted against mean corresponding IBI length. HRV, IBI, and their interrelationship were examined using Spearman's rank correlation analyses, Mann‐Whitney U tests, and Wilcoxon signed‐rank tests. Results The relationship between IBI and HRV showed signs of saturation in patients with AN. Furthermore, signs of HRV saturation were present in two HCN4 mutation carriers. In contrast, signs of HRV saturation were not present in controls. Conclusions The existence of HRV saturation does not support the existence of parasympathetically mediated bradycardia. Nonneural mechanisms, such as HCN4 downregulation, may be responsible for bradycardia and HRV saturation in patients with AN. KW - adolescent KW - anorexia nervosa KW - autonomic nervous system KW - electrocardiography KW - heart rate Y1 - 2021 U6 - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:bvb:20-opus-244724 VL - 4 IS - 3 ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Baumann, Christoph A1 - Rakowski, Ulla A1 - Buchhorn, Reiner T1 - Omega-3 Fatty Acid Supplementation Improves Heart Rate Variability in Obese Children JF - International Journal of Pediatrics N2 - Obese children and adolescents are at high risk of developing cardiovascular diseases later in life. We hypothesized that cardiovascular prophylaxis with omega-3 fatty acids could benefit them. In our study, 20 children and adolescents (mean body mass index percentile: 99.1; mean age: 11.0 years) underwent two ambulatory 24 h Holter electrocardiography (ECG) recordings (before and after at least 3 months of omega-3 fatty acid supplementation). Time domain heart rate variability (HRV) and heart rate (HR) were examined for these patients. As a control, we used 24 h Holter ECG recordings of 94 nonobese children and adolescents. Time domain HRV parameters, which are indicators of vagal stimulation, were significantly lower in obese patients than in healthy controls, but HR was higher (standard deviation of the normal-to-normal [SDNN] interbeat intervals: −34.02%; root mean square of successive differences [RMSSD] between normal heartbeats: −40.66%; percentage of consecutive RR intervals [pNN50]: −60.24%; HR: +13.37%). After omega-3 fatty acid supplementation, time domain HRV parameters and HR of obese patients were similar to the values of healthy controls (SDNN interbeat intervals: −21.73%; RMSSD: −19.56%; pNN50: −25.59%; HR: +3.94%). Therefore, omega-3 fatty acid supplementation may be used for cardiovascular prophylaxis in obese children and adolescents. KW - obesity KW - omega-3 fatty acids KW - Adipositas KW - Omega-3-Fettsäuren Y1 - 2018 U6 - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:bvb:20-opus-158769 UR - https://www.hindawi.com/journals/ijpedi/2018/8789604/ SN - 1687-9759 VL - 2018 IS - Article ID 8789604 ER - TY - INPR A1 - Baumann, Christoph A1 - Willaschek, Christian A1 - Kertess-Szlaninka, Tuende A1 - Lang, Johanna A1 - Buchhorn, Reiner T1 - Implementing high energy liquid nutrition, omega-3 fatty acids and nutritional supplements for the treatment of anorexia nervosa N2 - Objective: To examine the effects of two different treatment approaches on the course of anorexia nervosa (AN) over time. Methods: The subjects were 27 hospitalized AN patients (mean age: 14.91 years; mean BMI: 14.58; mean height: 163.56) . In our retrospective analysis we compared weight gain in two groups. While one group was treated with a standard oral refeeding protocol (historical control) through January 2013 (N=16), the second group (highly standardized refeeding protocol) received a high energy liquid nutrition and nutritional supplements including omega-3 fatty acids (N=11). Results: On admission, the two groups were comparable in terms of height, weight, age and heart rate. At the end of our monitoring time frame of 25 days, weight gain was 121.4% higher in the highly standardized refeeding protocol group than in the historical control group (66.5 ±52.4 vs 147.3 ±55.7 grams/day; t-Test p=0.004; CI95%: 29.3-132.2). About 45% of our patients stated they were vegetarians at admission. However, we could not identify a vegetarian diet as a statistically significant negative prognostic factor for weight gain. Discussion: The highly standardized refeeding protocol seems to be helpful in malnourished AN patients to improve weight gain without enhancing the risk of a refeeding syndrome. Because of an increasing energy turnover, caloric intake should be adjusted during refeeding. KW - Anorexia nervosa KW - refeeding syndrome KW - vegetarians KW - Anorexia nervosa Y1 - 2017 U6 - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:bvb:20-opus-150430 ER -