Objectives: The study aims to compare heart rate variability (HRV) in
borderline personality disorder (BPD) with healthy individuals and to
investigate the relationships between HRV parameters and impulsivity,
emotion regulation, and neurocognitive performances.
Method: Twenty-one female patients with the diagnosis of BPD and
twenty healthy women were enrolled in this study. All participants
were assessed by a structured clinical interview for DSM-IV Axis I
Disorders and the Minnesota Impulse Control Disorder Interview
Scale. They were asked to fill out a sociodemographic information form,
a Borderline Personality Inventory, the Barratt Impulsivity Scale-11,
the UPPS Impulsive Behavior Scale, and the Difficulties in Emotion
Regulation Scale. The trial-making test, the Wisconsin card sorting test,
the verbal fluency test, the Stroop test-TABG form, and the continuous
performance test were applied. Holter recordings were taken from the
participants at rest and while they watched emotion-evoking videos,
and HRV parameters were calculated.
Results: While watching neutral and fear videos, the low-frequency
band/ high-frequency band ratio (LF/HF) was found to be higher in
the patient group compared to the control group, and no difference
was found in the other parameters. A number of differences in terms of
impulse control, affect regulation, and neurocognitive skills have been
determined (p<0.05). However, there was no correlation between HRV
and self-report scales and neurocognitive test scores.
Conclusion: Contrary to our hypothesis, HRV is found to be similar
between BPD patients and healthy subjects. HRV was not associated
with impulse control, affect regulation or cognitive functions.
Keywords: Borderline Personality Disorder, Emotion Regulation,
Heart Rate Variability, İmpulsivity