Evaluating cardiovascular risk using the tone-entropy algorithm.

Currently the Framingham equation is the most often used cardiovascular risk calculator in health care. The equation requires data for age, gender, cholesterol status, blood pressure, diabetes status and smoking. A large proportion of the morbidity and mortality associated with cardiovascular disease is due to arrhythmic events that are multifactorial including dysregulation by the autonomic nervous system. In this study we applied the tone-entropy algorithm for analysis of heart rate variability obtained from 20 minute ECG recordings and compared the outcome with the Framingham risk stratification. Our results indicate a good agreement between the T-E algorithm and the Framingham risk equation suggesting that this algorithm may be of use for initial screening of cardiovascular risk as it is noninvasive, economical and easy to use in clinical practice.