COORDINATION AND TIMING OF HEART RATE COMPONENTS OF CHILDREN AND ADOLESCENTS WITH TEMPORAL LOBE EPILEPSY

The aim of our study was to reveal specific patterns of the heart rate variability (HRV) during preictal, ictal, and post-ictal periods in epileptic children. The continuous Morlet-wavelet transform was adapted to explore the time-frequency characteristics of the HRV (scalogram, linear and non-linear phase locking, and band-power analyses). The empirical mode decomposition was used to separate HRV components (e.g. blood-pressure-related waves and respiratory sinus arrhythmia). Their time-variant non-linear predictability was analysed (point prediction error). Timing and coordination of HRV components occurs 100 s before seizure onset producing a higher degree of synchronization and a higher predictability of HRV. The combined use of advanced linear and non-linear methods is crucial for this result.