Heart Rate Variability as an Index of Physiological Strain in Hyperthermic and Dehydrated Rats

摘要

Telemetry-equipped rats were subjected to hyperthermia (H, T sub c) = 41.5 deg C with and without dehydration (D 9% loss of body weight) stresses. Time domain and spectral analysis of heart rate variability indicated that the dehydrated hyperthermic (DH) rats had increased sympathetic activity compared to H rats, and DH rats had decreased discriminated the more physiologically stressful of these states. These non-invasive measures of physiological strain discriminated the more physiologically stressful of these states.