Reference:
Ibrahim LH, Jacono FJ, Patel SR, et al. Heritability of abnormalities in cardiopulmonary coupling in sleep apnea: use of an electrocardiogram-based technique. Sleep 2010; 33 (5): 643-46. PMID: 20469806 PMCID: PMC2864879
Objectives:
To evaluate the familial aggregation of distinctive spectrographic biomarkers of unstable sleep, related to elevated-low frequency (e-LFC), and to assess their utility in genetic studies.
Conclusions:
Approximately 30% of the variability of e-LFC, measured from a continuous ECG during sleep is explained by familial factors other than BMI. ECG-based spectrographic measures of heart rate variability & breathing rate may provide novel markers for characterizing subgroups of individuals with different propensities and genetic etiologies for sleep apnea or for other conditions associated with sleep fragmentation.
Practical Significance:
This study suggests that CPC provides an objective measure aimed to enhance our understanding of the genetics of OSA by identifying intermediate traits with high heritability.
