Optimal resting heart rate in adult population: factors related to the heart rate

Cho, Hyun Soo; Shin, Dong Gu; Bae, Jun Ho; Sohn, Jang Won; Hong, Geu Ru; Park, Jong Sun; Kim, Young Jo; Shim, Bong Sup; Kim, Hyung Jun

Abstract

BACKGROUND: The resting heart rate (HR) or HR recovery after exercise is one of the important predictors of cardiovascular disease mortality. However, few studies have addressed the ideal range of the HR. We sought to define the normal HR of healthy adults who have no evidence of cardiovascular or systemic illness, and none of the component of metabolic syndrome (MS).
METHODS
We analyzed a total of 20,162 asymptomatic adults, who were referred for a general health evaluation. All participants underwent careful clinical evaluation, including a detailed history, physical examination and laboratory workup. The mean HR for 30 seconds in the morning after an overnight fast was obtained. There were 7,823 subjects who were free of any component of MS. There were 935 MS patients, and 10,492 patients had > or =1 component of MS.
RESULTS
The HR was faster in women. The resting HR of healthy men was 59.9+/-8.2 bpm, and that of healthy women was 63.7+/-8.5 bpm. There was significant correlation between the HR and the age of healthy adults (r=-0.008, p<0.001). The mean resting HR was higher in the MS patients than that of their healthy counterparts (67.4+/-10.6 bpm vs 62.0+/-8.6 bpm, respectively, p=0.000). A significant gradual increase of HR was observed as the numbers of MS component increased (r=0.127, p<0.001). The systolic blood pressure, fasting blood sugar, HbA1c, triglyceride, gamma GTP, uric acid and CRP were significantly correlated with HR.
CONCLUSIONS
We herein newly define the optimal HR in a healthy adult population. Follow-up study is needed to clarify the role of HR as a risk stratifier.