Artificial neural network models for prediction of cardiovascular autonomic dysfunction in general Chinese population

BACKGROUND The present study aimed to develop an artificial neural network (ANN) based prediction model for cardiovascular autonomic (CA) dysfunction in the general population. METHODS We analyzed a previous dataset based on a population sample consisted of 2,092 individuals aged 30-80 years. The prediction models were derived from an exploratory set using ANN analysis. Performances of these prediction models were evaluated in the validation set. RESULTS Univariate analysis indicated that 14 risk factors showed statistically significant association with CA dysfunction (P < 0.05). The mean area under the receiver-operating curve was 0.762 (95% CI 0.732-0.793) for prediction model developed using ANN analysis. The mean sensitivity, specificity, positive and negative predictive values were similar in the prediction models was 0.751, 0.665, 0.330 and 0.924, respectively. All HL statistics were less than 15.0. CONCLUSION ANN is an effective tool for developing prediction models with high value for predicting CA dysfunction among the general population.