Mt. Tuomisto et al., THE AMBULATORY MEASUREMENT OF POSTURE, THIGH ACCELERATION, AND MUSCLETENSION AND THEIR RELATIONSHIP TO HEART-RATE, Psychophysiology, 33(4), 1996, pp. 409-415
We compared the relative ability of continuous accelerometric, electro
myographic (EMG), and hydrostatic posture measurements to discriminate
tasks involving variations in motor activity and posture and to predi
ct heart rate (HR) variability. EMG was a more sensitive measure than
accelerometry in differentiating the tasks. However, accelerometry and
EMG explained comparable amounts of HR variance. The hydrostatic post
ure was a stable measure that clearly differentiated postures and expl
ained a significant amount of HR variance but less than accelerometry
or EMG. Accelerometric and EMG measures of motor activity used either
alone or in combination with the hydrostatic posture are valuable in d
iscriminating activities and in controlling for the effects of motor a
ctivity and posture on HR during ambulatory measurement.