Abstract
Spectral analysis of heart rate variability (HRV) allows us to study the interaction between psychological and neurophysiological stress mechanisms. With this analysis, low-frequency (LF) and high-frequency (HF) bands are obtained, whose values can be represented with different units. However, there are inconsistencies in some of these units in the stress assessment. Objective. This study aimed to analyze the similarity of 5 units of HRV in a psychophysiological stress assessment. Method. Two groups of first-time undergraduate students participated. The psychophysiological assessment had three conditions; baseline, stress, and recovery. Comparisons also included baseline and stress conditions. Spearman correlations and principal component analysis were performed among all HRV units. Results. There were significant reductions in all HF units in both groups in the stress condition. Only one group showed significant differences in all LF units. Principal component and correlation analyses corroborated the dependence between LF and HF represented in normalized and relative units. Using these two units should be considered with caution in stress assessment.
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