Abstract:Aim To study the correlation between heart rate variability (HRV) and right ventricular dysfunction (RVD) in patients with heart failure with preserved ejection fraction (HFpEF) combined with atrial fibrillation (AF). Methods 128 patients with HFpEF and AF admitted to our hospital from January 1,2 to December 1,4 were selected as the research subjects. Based on the results of right heart function assessment, the patients were divided into two groups:the right ventricular dysfunction group (n=53) and the normal right ventricular function group (n=75). Spearman correlation was employed to assess the correlation between HRV parameters and right ventricular function parameters. A multi-factor generalized linear mixed-effects model was constructed, with HRV parameters as independent variables and RVD as the dependent variable. Restricted cubic splines were used to investigate the dose-response relationship between HRV parameters and the incidence of RVD. Additionally, the diagnostic value of HRV parameters and combined detection for RVD was analyzed using the ROC curve. Results The levels of HRV parameters (SDNN, SDANN, RMSSD, PNN50, LF and HF) and right ventricular function parameters (TAPSE, FAC and S′) in the right ventricular dysfunction group were significantly lower than those in the normal right ventricular function group (P<0.05). Linear analysis revealed a significant positive correlation between HRV parameters and right ventricular function parameters (P<0.05). Multifactor generalized linear mixed-effects model analysis demonstrated that SDNN, SDANN, RMSSD, PNN50, LF and HF were negatively correlated with the incidence of RVD (the β coefficients were -0.465, -0.205, -0.559, -0.293, -0.732, and -0.147, respectively, P<0.05). Restricted cubic spline model analysis indicated a significant nonlinear relationship between HRV parameters and the incidence of RVD (P<0.05). The AUC value of combined detection of HRV parameters was 0.946, with sensitivity and specificity of 93.56% and 94.57%, respectively. Conclusion There is a negative correlation between HRV and the incidence of RVD in patients with HFpEF combined with AF.This result offers a critical theoretical foundation for clinical assessment and therapeutic strategies.