Growth, Exercise, NUtrition and Development (GENUD) Research Group, University of Zaragoza, 50009 Zaragoza, Spain.
Department of Physiatry and Nursing, Faculty of Health and Sport Science (FCSD), University of Zaragoza, 22002 Huesca, Spain.
Sensors (Basel). 2021 Jan 29;21(3):902. doi: 10.3390/s21030902.
This work aims to validate the Polar H7 heart rate (HR) sensor for heart rate variability (HRV) analysis at rest and during various exercise intensities in a cohort of male volunteers with different age, body composition and fitness level. Cluster analysis was carried out to evaluate how these phenotypic characteristics influenced HR and HRV measurements. For this purpose, sixty-seven volunteers performed a test consisting of the following consecutive segments: sitting rest, three submaximal exercise intensities in cycle-ergometer and sitting recovery. The agreement between HRV indices derived from Polar H7 and a simultaneous electrocardiogram (ECG) was assessed using concordance correlation coefficient (CCC). The percentage of subjects not reaching excellent agreement (CCC > 0.90) was higher for high-frequency power (P) than for low-frequency power (P) of HRV and increased with exercise intensity. A cluster of unfit and not young volunteers with high trunk fat percentage showed the highest error in HRV indices. This study indicates that Polar H7 and ECG were interchangeable at rest. During exercise, HR and P showed excellent agreement between devices. However, during the highest exercise intensity, CCC for P was lower than 0.90 in as many as 60% of the volunteers. During recovery, HR but not HRV measurements were accurate. As a conclusion, phenotypic differences between subjects can represent one of the causes for disagreement between HR sensors and ECG devices, which should be considered specifically when using Polar H7 and, generally, in the validation of any HR sensor for HRV analysis.
本研究旨在验证 Polar H7 心率（HR）传感器在不同年龄、身体成分和健康水平的男性志愿者静息和不同运动强度下进行心率变异性（HRV）分析的有效性。通过聚类分析评估这些表型特征如何影响 HR 和 HRV 测量。为此，67 名志愿者进行了一项测试，包括以下连续阶段：坐姿休息、三轮次自行车测力计的次最大运动强度和坐姿恢复。使用一致性相关系数（CCC）评估 Polar H7 和同时进行的心电图（ECG）得出的 HRV 指数之间的一致性。对于 HRV 的高频功率（P），未达到优秀一致性（CCC>0.90）的受试者百分比高于低频功率（P），并且随着运动强度的增加而增加。一组不适合且不年轻、躯干脂肪百分比高的志愿者显示出 HRV 指数的最高误差。本研究表明，Polar H7 和 ECG 在静息时可互换。在运动过程中，HR 和 P 显示出设备之间的极好一致性。然而，在最高运动强度下，多达 60%的志愿者的 P 的 CCC 低于 0.90。在恢复期间，HR 但不是 HRV 测量是准确的。总之，受试者之间的表型差异可能是 HR 传感器和 ECG 设备之间不一致的原因之一，在使用 Polar H7 时应特别考虑这一点，并且通常在验证任何用于 HRV 分析的 HR 传感器时也应考虑这一点。
