Analysis of autonomic control of air traffic controllers by heart rate variability

Abstract

Objective: To examine the behavior of the autonomic nervous system by examining the variability of heart rate in air traffic controllers. Methods: Twenty students were subjected to two different protocols to) rest and b) non-radar simulation practice. The RR intervals were recorded by a cardiac monitor and treated by continuous Wavelet transformed. Results: The behavior of the sympathetic nervous system calculated by the area under the curve between 0.04 and 0.15 Hz (LF) was equal to 852.46 ± 519.67 during the non-radar simulation practice, and 332.4 ± 286.58 for the sympathetic nervous system during the rest p ≤ 0.05. Analyzing the behavior of HR in situations of non-radar simulation practice and in rest, we obtained values, respectively, of 86.424 ± 12.36 ± 7.30 and 60.80, p≤0.05. Conclusion: The air traffic controllers showed a predominance of sympathetic stimulation and increased the HR, showing high level of stress during the activity.