HEART RATE VARIABILITY ANALYSIS IN APPARENTLY HEALTHY NEWBORN CALVES

Abstract

Functional system is the basic notion in the advanced concept of systemic regulation of bodily physiological functions; one of the ways to evaluate state of regulatory mechanisms is the heart rate variability (HRV) analysis. This study was aimed at HRV analysis in apparently health new-born calves under 10 days old. The author has carried out general analysis of electrocardiograms and HRV using variation pulsometry; stress index (SI) in regulatory systems was calculated for the selected category of animals. Average SI was drawn for healthy new-born calves: at Day 1 age: 215.4±16.57 points (normotonia, moderate sympathicotonia) and 979.3±41.1 (hypersympathicotonia); at Day 2 - 8 age 103.59±19.88 points (normotonia); and at Day 9 - 10 age 106.65±25.4 points (normotonia). It was found that stress index in apparently healthy newborn calves stabilized by age of 2 days to normotonia, hence the heart rate was regulated through a multi-level regulatory system at relatively steady level. Elevated SI in calves in the first days of life was detected and could possibly be explained by prevalence of one of the regulatory levels because of inherent functional insufficiency. In this case low functional reserves of the body manifested through high SI in regulatory systems during the first day of life regardless of its stabilization at Day 2 could be a sign of lower adaptation capacity of the animal.