Cardiac Cycle Patterns Among RCMP Cadets

Why was the study done?

The cardiac cycle timing intervals and measurements of heart function can provide key insights to an individual’s stress levels. Some of these parameters are widely available in many different groups, including the general public, university athletes, and those with heart diseases. However, there is still limited data available to describe the cardiac cycle of Cadet recruits joining policing. Considering that members of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) have an increased risk for developing various posttraumatic stress injuries, monitoring their heart function can be vital to identify worrisome changes which can lead to a future medical complication. The current study was designed to characterize the cardiac cycle metrics of the RCMP Cadets beginning their Cadet training program (CTP) to provide values to be used for comparison.

What was done in the study?

The current research includes participants from the larger, 10-year RCMP Study. Participants were RCMP Cadets starting the 26-week CTP who completed recordings of their cardiac function. Participants collected their heart data using the LLA RecordisTM device. This device measures the vibrations produced by each heartbeat to identify different periods of the cardiac cycle, including when the heart is squeezing and relaxing. During the recording, participants rested in supine position for 1-minute prior to placing the device on their sternum. The device was then turned on for 1-minute to record the data. The data was streamed directly to the LLA application on the participant mobile phone. The application streams the data recorded from the LLA RecordisTM device to the web based LLA platform for storage and analyses.

What did we find out?

We found that RCMP Cadets beginning their training program have similar differences between males and females as seen in the healthy general population. There are differences between heart function of RCMP Cadets beginning their training program in comparison to university athletes, likely due to different demands placed on their hearts. While there are some differences between RCMP Cadets beginning their training program in comparison to the healthy members of the general public; there are no differences in markers which are predictive of a future medical complication. As such, male and female RCMP Cadets do not present with a heightened risk for a future medical complication relative to healthy members of the general public.