Application of spectral characteristics of electrocardiogram signals in sleep apnea

BackgroundElectrocardiogram (ECG) signals contain cardiopulmonary information that can facilitate sleep apnea detection. Traditional methods rely on extracting numerous ECG features, which is labor-intensive and computationally cumbersome.MethodsTo reduce feature complexity and enhance detection acc...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Jiayue Hu, Liu Yang, Xintong Zhao, Haicheng Wei, Jing Zhao, Miaomiao Li
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Frontiers Media S.A. 2025-07-01
Series:Frontiers in Bioengineering and Biotechnology
Subjects:
Online Access:https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fbioe.2025.1636011/full
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
_version_ 1839627637737127936
author Jiayue Hu
Liu Yang
Xintong Zhao
Haicheng Wei
Jing Zhao
Miaomiao Li
author_facet Jiayue Hu
Liu Yang
Xintong Zhao
Haicheng Wei
Jing Zhao
Miaomiao Li
author_sort Jiayue Hu
collection DOAJ
description BackgroundElectrocardiogram (ECG) signals contain cardiopulmonary information that can facilitate sleep apnea detection. Traditional methods rely on extracting numerous ECG features, which is labor-intensive and computationally cumbersome.MethodsTo reduce feature complexity and enhance detection accuracy, we propose a spectral feature-based approach using single-lead ECG signals. First, the ECG signal is preprocessed via ensemble empirical mode decomposition combined with independent component analysis (EEMD-ICA) to identify the most representative intrinsic mode function (IMF) based on the maximum instantaneous frequency in the frequency domain. Next, Hilbert transform-based time-frequency analysis is applied to derive the component’s 2D time-frequency spectrum. Finally, three spectral features—maximum instantaneous frequency (femax), instantaneous frequency amplitude (V), and marginal spectrum energy (S)—are quantitatively compared between normal and sleep apnea populations using an independent-sample t-test. These features are classified via a random forest machine learning model.ResultsThe femax and IMF7 components of the reconstructed signal exhibited statistically significant differences (p < 0.001) between normal and sleep apnea subjects. The random forest classifier achieved optimal performance, with 92.9% accuracy, 86.6% specificity, and 100% sensitivity.ConclusionThis study demonstrates that spectral features derived from single-lead ECG signals, combined with EEMD-ICA and time-frequency analysis, offer an efficient and accurate method for sleep apnea detection.
format Article
id doaj-art-2ecf2f7a24f84879b9500f3f330a34df
institution Matheson Library
issn 2296-4185
language English
publishDate 2025-07-01
publisher Frontiers Media S.A.
record_format Article
series Frontiers in Bioengineering and Biotechnology
spelling doaj-art-2ecf2f7a24f84879b9500f3f330a34df2025-07-16T05:36:44ZengFrontiers Media S.A.Frontiers in Bioengineering and Biotechnology2296-41852025-07-011310.3389/fbioe.2025.16360111636011Application of spectral characteristics of electrocardiogram signals in sleep apneaJiayue Hu0Liu Yang1Xintong Zhao2Haicheng Wei3Jing Zhao4Miaomiao Li5School of Electrical and Information Engineering, North Minzu University, Yinchuan, Ningxia, ChinaSchool of Electrical and Information Engineering, North Minzu University, Yinchuan, Ningxia, ChinaSchool of Electrical and Information Engineering, North Minzu University, Yinchuan, Ningxia, ChinaSchool of Medical Technology, North Minzu University, Yinchuan, Ningxia, ChinaSchool of Information Engineering, Ningxia University, Yinchuan, Ningxia, ChinaSchool of Electrical and Information Engineering, North Minzu University, Yinchuan, Ningxia, ChinaBackgroundElectrocardiogram (ECG) signals contain cardiopulmonary information that can facilitate sleep apnea detection. Traditional methods rely on extracting numerous ECG features, which is labor-intensive and computationally cumbersome.MethodsTo reduce feature complexity and enhance detection accuracy, we propose a spectral feature-based approach using single-lead ECG signals. First, the ECG signal is preprocessed via ensemble empirical mode decomposition combined with independent component analysis (EEMD-ICA) to identify the most representative intrinsic mode function (IMF) based on the maximum instantaneous frequency in the frequency domain. Next, Hilbert transform-based time-frequency analysis is applied to derive the component’s 2D time-frequency spectrum. Finally, three spectral features—maximum instantaneous frequency (femax), instantaneous frequency amplitude (V), and marginal spectrum energy (S)—are quantitatively compared between normal and sleep apnea populations using an independent-sample t-test. These features are classified via a random forest machine learning model.ResultsThe femax and IMF7 components of the reconstructed signal exhibited statistically significant differences (p < 0.001) between normal and sleep apnea subjects. The random forest classifier achieved optimal performance, with 92.9% accuracy, 86.6% specificity, and 100% sensitivity.ConclusionThis study demonstrates that spectral features derived from single-lead ECG signals, combined with EEMD-ICA and time-frequency analysis, offer an efficient and accurate method for sleep apnea detection.https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fbioe.2025.1636011/fullsleep apneaEEMD-ICAspectrum featuresIMFrandom Forest
spellingShingle Jiayue Hu
Liu Yang
Xintong Zhao
Haicheng Wei
Jing Zhao
Miaomiao Li
Application of spectral characteristics of electrocardiogram signals in sleep apnea
Frontiers in Bioengineering and Biotechnology
sleep apnea
EEMD-ICA
spectrum features
IMF
random Forest
title Application of spectral characteristics of electrocardiogram signals in sleep apnea
title_full Application of spectral characteristics of electrocardiogram signals in sleep apnea
title_fullStr Application of spectral characteristics of electrocardiogram signals in sleep apnea
title_full_unstemmed Application of spectral characteristics of electrocardiogram signals in sleep apnea
title_short Application of spectral characteristics of electrocardiogram signals in sleep apnea
title_sort application of spectral characteristics of electrocardiogram signals in sleep apnea
topic sleep apnea
EEMD-ICA
spectrum features
IMF
random Forest
url https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fbioe.2025.1636011/full
work_keys_str_mv AT jiayuehu applicationofspectralcharacteristicsofelectrocardiogramsignalsinsleepapnea
AT liuyang applicationofspectralcharacteristicsofelectrocardiogramsignalsinsleepapnea
AT xintongzhao applicationofspectralcharacteristicsofelectrocardiogramsignalsinsleepapnea
AT haichengwei applicationofspectralcharacteristicsofelectrocardiogramsignalsinsleepapnea
AT jingzhao applicationofspectralcharacteristicsofelectrocardiogramsignalsinsleepapnea
AT miaomiaoli applicationofspectralcharacteristicsofelectrocardiogramsignalsinsleepapnea