Correlation dimension in heart rate variability

A study of the nonlinear dynamics and chaotic activity of heart rate variability by computing the correlation dimension of the interbeat interval (IBI) signal is discussed. Fourteen subjects (seven normal controls and seven chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS) patients) were analyzed and compared. The results of the study above indicate that normal subjects have a higher correlation dimension than CFS patients. This means that normal people need more past data than CFS patients to predict the future value. The study shows that the correlation dimension provides a useful way to measure the difference between sick and healthy people. It also points out that potential utility of dimension in a medical context