Abstract :
A major challenge in biological physics is the analysis of time series that are typically highly nonstationary. Viswanathan et al. (Phys. Rev. E 55 (1) (1997) 845–899) using techniques based on the Fano factor and the Allan factor functions, as well as on detrended fluctuation analysis showed that the scaling properties of the dynamics of healthy physiological systems in normal conditions are more stable than those of pathological systems—there is underlying loss of uniform power-law scaling in disease.
Here we test, using the same techniques as Viswanathan et al. (1997), the hypothesis that deviations from uniform power-law scaling, similar to those seen in heart failure and deep apnea syndrome occur also for healthy subjects under pathological conditions (hypoxaemic stress during exposure to high altitude, over 6000 m).
