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| Authors and year | Study title | Sex/participants/age | Aim of study/assessment | Main outcomes |
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| Grant et al. (2018) [24] | The difference between exercise-induced autonomic and Fitness changes measured after 12 and 20 weeks of medium-to-high intensity military training | 154 healthy recruits (male = 89, female = 65, age = 20.91 ± 1.29 with a body mass index of 22.85 ± 2.78 kg/m2) | To compare the physical fitness, based on VO2max and exercise-induced cardiac autonomic changes, measured by heart rate variability of 12 weeks with 20 weeks of training in the South African National Defence Force | Cardiorespiratory fitness (VO2max) did not increase during the 12- to 20-week period although heart rate and sympathetic cardiac control decreased with a simultaneous increase in vagal cardiac control |
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| Campos et al. (2018) [25] | Influence of autonomic control on the specific intermittent performance of judo athletes | Sixteen judo athletes of both sexes (12 men and 4 women, age of 19.6 ± 2.9 years, body mass of 67.9 ± 12.1 kg) | To verify the correlation between heart rate variability at rest with performance in the special judo fitness test | The rates of vagal tone in the time domain of resting heart rate variability correlated positively with the performance of judo athletes (number of throws) |
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| Gantt et al. (2017) [26] | The effect of binaural beat technology on the cardiovascular stress response in military service members with postdeployment stress | 74 military service members with a complaint of continued stress following a deployment | To assess the efficacy of embedded theta brainwave frequency in music using binaural beat technology compared to music alone on the cardiovascular stress response in military service members with postdeployment stress | Participants who used music with embedded binaural beat technology displayed a decrease in sympathetic responses and an increase in parasympathetic responses, while participants who used music alone had the opposite effect |
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| Tegeler et al. (2017) [27] | Successful use of closed-loop allostatic neurotechnology for post-traumatic stress symptoms in military personnel: self-reported and autonomic improvements | Eighteen service members or recent veterans (15 active duty and 3 veterans, most from special operations, 1 female, age = 40.9 ± 6.9 years) and symptoms of posttraumatic stress disorder from 1 to 25 years | To document changes in self-reported symptoms, autonomic, and functional measures after use of a closed-loop acoustic stimulation neurotechnology | There were significant improvements in multiple measures of heart rate variability in both time and frequency domains |
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| Binsch et al. (2017) [28] | No effects of successful bidirectional SMR feedback training on objective and subjective sleep in healthy subjects | 62 participants, all military working at the Dutch Ministry of Defence | To analyse to what extent participants could gain voluntary control over sleep-related parameters and secondarily to assess possible influences of this training on sleep metrics | After the training, the heart rate variability values improved, but no effects were found on sleep spindles, actigraphy, sleep diaries, and self-reported sleep quality |
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| Wahbeh et al. (2016) [30] | Mechanistic pathways of mindfulness meditation in combat veterans with posttraumatic stress disorder | 102 combat veterans with posttraumatic stress disorder | To evaluate the effect of two common components of meditation (mindfulness and slow breathing) on potential mechanistic pathways | Meditation helped to improve posttraumatic stress disorder and related symptoms, although there were no different effects between groups |
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| Hourani et al. (2016) [31] | Toward preventing post-traumatic stress disorder: development and testing of a pilot predeployment stress inoculation training program | 351 active duty male Marines scheduled for imminent deployment for combat operations | To design, develop, and evaluate a predeployment stress inoculation training preventive intervention to enable deploying personnel to cope better with combat-related stressors and mitigate the negative effects of trauma exposure | The predeployment stress inoculation training protected against post-traumatic stress disorders among Marines without baseline mental health problems. This strategy could be used as a potential preventive strategy in the military personnel |
| Lamb et al. (2017) [32] | Non-invasive vagal nerve stimulation effects on hyperarousal and autonomic state in patients with posttraumatic stress disorder and history of mild traumatic brain injury: preliminary evidence | Participants diagnosed with posttraumatic stress disorder (n = 12, 30.4 ± 5.4 years) and healthy combat controls (n = 10, age = 29.7 ± 7.0 years) | To evaluate noninvasive vagal nerve stimulation on hyperarousal and autonomic state in patients with posttraumatic stress disorder | The stimulation improved the vagal tone and moderated the autonomic response to startle and stress in this population |
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