Background: Currently, and to the best of our knowledge, there is no standardized protocol to measure the effect of low- to moderate-intensity physical exercise on autonomic modulation focused in older people. Aim: Validate a test–retest short-term exercise protocol for measuring the autonomic response through HRV in older people. Methods: A test–retest study design was used. The participants were selected through intentional non-probabilistic sampling. A total of 105 older people (male: 21.9%; female: 78.1%) were recruited from a local community. The assessment protocol evaluated HRV before and immediately after the 2-min step test. It was performed twice on the same day, considering a time of three chronological hours between the two measurements. Results: The posterior distribution of estimated responses in the Bayesian framework suggests moderate to strong evidence favoring a null effect between measurements. In addition, there was moderate to robust agreement between heart rate variability (HRV) indices and assessments, except for low frequency and very low frequency, which showed weak agreement. Conclusions: Our results provide moderate to strong evidence for using HRV to measure cardiac autonomic response to moderate exercise, suggesting that it is sufficiently reliable to show similar results to those shown in this test–retest protocol.

Physical activity can prevent many organic and mental pathologies. For people living in extreme southern high-latitude environments, weather conditions can affect these activities, altering their psychological well-being and favoring the prevalence of seasonal sensitivity (SS). This study aims to determine the relationships between the practice of physical activity, seasonal sensitivity and well-being in people living in high southern latitudes. A cross-sectional study was conducted, using the Seasonal Pattern Assessment Questionnaire (SPAQ), applying a psychological well-being scale, and determining sports practice according to the recommendations of the World Health Organization (WHO) for the 370 male (n = 209; 55%) and female (n = 173; 45%) participants. The main results indicated that 194 people (52 ± 7.7 years) reported physical activity. High-intensity physical activity practitioners recorded a significantly lower proportion of SS. In terms of psychological well-being, an adverse effect was found between the Seasonal Score Index (SSI) and five subcategories of the Ryff well-being scale. In conclusion, those who perform high-intensity physical activity have a lower SS, and those who have a higher SS have a lower psychological well-being.

Objective: To study the differences in cardiac autonomic modulation in response to muscle fatigue caused by high-intensity exercise during two consecutive competition periods in young swimmers.Methods: Twenty-six competitive swimmers, selected by their training volume, were separated in two groups, females (n = 12 [46%], age: 13.5 ± 1.4 years) and males (n = 14 [54%], age: 13.9 ± 1.7 years), aged between 10 and 16 years, were evaluated five times as follow: (i) 21 days before the first competition (t-0); (ii) two days before (t-1; t-3); and (iii) two days after (t-2; t-4) of the first and second competitions. Morphological measurements (body mass, percentage of total body fat and height), blood pressure, power, and resting heart rate variability (RR with Polar band) were recorded before and after Wingate test at each time.Results: Body fat was higher in females compared to males. However, no differences were found in other morphological parameters. An intra-subject analysis grouped by sex in cardiovascular parameters shows longitudinal variations in systolic pressure and mean pressure among females. Additionally, females depicted higher, very low frequency (VLF, which is intrinsically generated by the heart and strongly associated with emotional stress) after physical fatigue compared to males at t-1. Further, before the competition, the high frequency (HF) component of HRV (parasympathetic drive) was higher in males than females at t-0 and t-4.Conclusion: Our data revealed that males displayed greater parasympathetic reactivity after an anaerobic muscle fatigue test during their competition periods. Contrarily, females had a less cardiac autonomic modulation when comparing the pre-post Wingate test after two consecutive competition periods.

Confinement during the COVID-19 pandemic has significantly impacted lifestyles worldwide. The aim of this study was to evaluate the effect of confinement on anxiety symptoms and sleep quality in people living in extreme southern latitudes. The Beck Anxiety Inventory (BAI) and the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI) were administered to 617 people, 74.2% of whom were women. The sample was grouped according to confinement: the zone of confinement (CZ) (46.5%) and the zone of partial confinement (PZ) (53.5%). In addition, the sample was further categorized into four age subgroups (18–25 years; 26–40 years; 41–50 years; over 50 years). Higher levels of anxiety and worse sleep quality were found in the CZ group than in the PZ group. Women had higher levels of anxiety and worse sleep quality than men. A significant bidirectional relationship between anxiety and sleep quality was observed, even after controlling for sex. This study demonstrated that women and young adults were more vulnerable to the effects of confinement on anxiety symptoms and sleep quality in populations at southern latitudes.

Automated and robust framework for analyzing R-R interval (RRi) signals using advanced nonlinear modeling and preprocessing techniques. The package implements a dual-logistic model to capture the rapid drop and subsequent recovery of RRi during exercise, as described by Castillo-Aguilar et al. (2025) . In addition, 'CardioCurveR' includes tools for filtering RRi signals using zero-phase Butterworth low-pass filtering and for cleaning ectopic beats via adaptive outlier replacement using local regression and robust statistics. These integrated methods preserve the dynamic features of RRi signals and facilitate accurate cardiovascular monitoring and clinical research.

El rasgo de alta sensibilidad al procesamiento sensorial (HSPST) es una característica neurológica específica que afecta al 20% de la población mundial. Se caracteriza porque la Persona Altamente Sensible (PAS) tiene altos niveles de capacidad empática, relatividad emocional y sensibilidad ante estímulos sutiles imperceptibles para los demás. Objetivo: Relacionar el rasgo del HSPST y el equilibrio postural en personas mayores. Métodos: El estudio fue de tipo correlacional. Se realizó en una única etapa mediante cuestionario presencial y evaluación del equilibrio postural. Los participantes en este estudio fueron seleccionados mediante muestreo accidental y no aleatorio de la ciudad de Punta Arenas, Chile. La muestra estuvo compuesta por 77 adultos mayores con edades entre 63 y 77 años. Resultados: La puntuación de la Escala de personas de alta sensibilidad (HSPS) predijo significativamente el resultado del equilibrio postural con los ojos cerrados (EC). El estudio demostró una correlación entre la puntuación HSPS y el equilibrio postural. Si bien se incrementó la puntuación HSPS, se esperaba un equilibrio postural en los adultos mayores. Conclusiones: las personas con un puntaje HSPS alto se establecería como predictor del resultado del equilibrio con EC, observándose que por cada aumento de una unidad en el puntaje HSPS, hay una disminución del 6% en la probabilidad de tener el equilibrio alterado. Palabras clave: Procesamiento sensorial, Equilibrio postural, Envejecimiento, Sensibilidad, Neurociencias. High sensory processing sensitivity trait (HSPST) is a specific neurological characteristic affecting 20% of the world's population. It is characterized because the Highly Sensitive Person (HSP) has high levels of empathic capacity, emotional relativity, and sensitivity to subtle stimuli imperceptible to others. Objective: Relate the trait of the HSPST and postural balance in older people. Methods: This was a correlational. It was conducted in a single stage using a presential questionnaire and postural balance assessment. The participants in this study were selected by non-random, accidental sampling from the city of Punta Arenas, Chile. The sample comprised 77 older adults aged between 63 and 77 years. Results: The High Sensitive Person Scale (HSPS) score significantly predicted the eye-closed (EC) postural balance outcome. The study demonstrated a correlation between the HSPS score and postural balance. While increasing the HSPS score, postural balance was expected in older adults. Conclusions: People with a high HSPS score would be established as a predictor of the result of balance with EC, observing that for every one unit increase in the HSPS score, there is a 6% decrease in the probability of having a balance altered. Keywords: Sensory processing, Postural balance, Aging, Sensitivity, Neurosciences.