Effects of Heart Rate Variability Biofeedback Therapy on Patients with Poststroke Depression: A Case Study

IntroductIon Poststroke depression (PSD) is one of the common complications of cerebrovascular diseases. Drug therapy and cognitive behavioral therapy are two commonly used methods in current clinical treatments of PSD. However, either method has its own drawbacks: The former has problems such as the slow onset of action and various side effects, and patients often have a poor response to the latter.[1] Recently, scientists have started using the heart rate variability (HRV) biofeedback approach to treating patients with depression and found significant clinical efficacy. HRV biofeedback requires patients to synchronize heart rate (HR) oscillations, and breathe by slow abdominal breathing (about 6 times/min; i.e., at the resonance frequency of 0.1 Hz), and thus maximizes HRV.[2] The objective of this study is to examine the impacts of HRV biofeedback on patients’ emotional improvement and to explore the potential of this approach as an effective, side‐effect‐free supplement for comprehensive recovery.