scholarly journals Cardiovascular Sympathetic Arousal in Response to Different Mental Stressors

2015 ◽  
pp. S585-S594 ◽  
Author(s):  
M. MESTANIK ◽  
A. MESTANIKOVA ◽  
Z. VISNOVCOVA ◽  
A. CALKOVSKA ◽  
I. TONHAJZEROVA
Keyword(s):  
Heart Rate ◽  
Arterial Pressure ◽  
Mental Stress ◽  
Mental Arithmetic ◽  
Real Life ◽  
Stroop Test ◽  
Autonomic Response ◽  
Central Processing ◽  
Mental Stressors ◽  
Sympathetic Arousal

The altered regulation of autonomic response to mental stress can result in increased cardiovascular risk. The laboratory tests used to simulate the autonomic responses to real-life stressors do not necessarily induce generalized sympathetic activation; therefore, the assessment of regulatory outputs to different effector organs could be important. We aimed to study the cardiovascular sympathetic arousal in response to different mental stressors (Stroop test, mental arithmetic test) in 20 healthy students. The conceivable sympathetic vascular index – spectral power of low frequency band of systolic arterial pressure variability (LF-SAP) and novel potential cardio-sympathetic index – symbolic dynamics heart rate variability index 0V% were evaluated. The heart and vessels responded differently to mental stress – while Stroop test induced increase of both 0V% and LF-SAP indices suggesting complex sympathetic arousal, mental arithmetic test evoked only 0V% increase compared to baseline (p<0.01, p<0.001, p<0.01, respectively). Significantly greater reactivity of LF-SAP, 0V%, heart rate (HR) and mean arterial pressure (MAP) were found in response to Stroop test compared to mental arithmetic test potentially indicating the effect of different central processing (0V%, LF-SAP: p<0.001; HR, MAP: p<0.01). The different effectors’ sympathetic responses to cognitive stressors could provide novel important information regarding potential pathomechanisms of stress-related diseases.

Effects of mental stress on autonomic cardiac modulation during weightlessness

2010 ◽  
Vol 298 (1) ◽  
pp. H202-H209 ◽  
Author(s):  
André E. Aubert ◽  
Bart Verheyden ◽  
Constantin d′Ydewalle ◽  
Frank Beckers ◽  
Omer Van den Bergh
Keyword(s):  
Heart Rate ◽  
Mean Arterial Pressure ◽  
Arterial Pressure ◽  
High Frequency ◽  
Mental Stress ◽  
Mental Arithmetic ◽  
Low Frequency ◽  
Arithmetic Task ◽  
Mental Arithmetic Task ◽  
Normalized Units

Sustained weightlessness affects all body functions, among these also cardiac autonomic control mechanisms. How this may influence neural response to central stimulation by a mental arithmetic task remains an open question. The hypothesis was tested that microgravity alters cardiovascular neural response to standardized cognitive load stimuli. Beat-to-beat heart rate, brachial blood pressure, and respiratory frequency were collected in five astronauts, taking part in three different short-duration (10 to 11 days) space missions to the International Space Station. Data recording was performed in supine position 1 mo before launch; at days 5 or 8 in space; and on days 1, 4, and 25 after landing. Heart rate variability (HRV) parameters were obtained in the frequency domain. Measurements were performed in the control condition for 10 min and during a 5-min mental arithmetic stress task, consisting of deducting 17 from a four-digit number, read by a colleague, and orally announcing the result. Our results show that over all sessions (pre-, in-, and postflight), mental stress induced an average increase in mean heart rate (Δ7 ± 1 beats/min; P = 0.03) and mean arterial pressure (Δ7 ± 1 mmHg; P = 0.006). A sympathetic excitation during mental stress was shown from HRV parameters: increase of low frequency expressed in normalized units (Δ8.3 ± 1.4; P = 0.004) and low frequency/high frequency (Δ1.6 ± 0.3; P = 0.001) and decrease of high frequency expressed in normalized units (Δ8.9 ± 1.4; P = 0.004). The total power was not influenced by mental stress. No effect of spaceflight was found on baseline heart rate, mean arterial pressure, and HRV parameters. No differences in response to mental stress were found between pre-, in-, and postflight. Our findings confirm that a mental arithmetic task in astronauts elicits sympathovagal shifts toward enhanced sympathetic modulation and reduced vagal modulation. However, these responses are not changed in space during microgravity or after spaceflight.

Effect of short-term mental stress on time- domain indices of heart rate variability in obese individuals – A case- control study

Biomedicine ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 41 (2) ◽  
pp. 274-277
Author(s):  
Priya S.A. ◽  
R. Rajalakshmi
Keyword(s):  
Heart Rate ◽  
Heart Rate Variability ◽  
Neuronal Activity ◽  
Time Domain ◽  
Mental Stress ◽  
Mental Arithmetic ◽  
High Body Mass Index ◽  
Control Group ◽  
Stress Task ◽  
The Individual

  Introduction and Aim: Mental stress may impact dramatically on dynamic autonomic control on heart. Many studies have demonstrated association of high body mass index (BMI) with greater risk for cardiovascular disease with disturbance in autonomic neuronal activity. Analysis of Heart rate variability (HRV)during acute mental stress assesses the autonomic status of the individual. Hence, we aimed to study the effect of acute mental stress on time domain measures in obese adults.   Materials and Methods:Sixty male volunteers of 30 each in study group (obese individuals) and control group (non-obese individuals) were recruited for the study. A basal recording of ECG in lead II was done on all the individuals. Then they underwent mental arithmetic stress task for 5 minutes during which again ECG was recorded. The change in time domain measures of HRV during rest and stress task was analyzed and compared between both the groups.   Results: Analysis of time domain measures of HRV revealed a statistically significant increase (p ? 0.001) in mean heart rate in both obese and non-obese individuals, while rMSSD(root mean square differences of successive RR interval) and SDNN (standard deviation of all NN intervals) showed a statistically significant (p? 0.001) decrease in obese individuals and non-obese individuals did not show any statistically significant change during the mental stress task.   Conclusion: In response to acute mental stress there was increased heart rate in both the groups. But the autonomic neuronal activity differed by way of sympathetic dominance in non-obese individuals and parasympathetic withdrawal in obese individuals.  

scholarly journals Effect of nutritive and non-nutritive sweeteners on hemodynamic responses to acute stress: a randomized crossover trial in healthy women

2020 ◽  
Vol 10 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Jérémy Cros ◽  
Lucie Bidlingmeyer ◽  
Robin Rosset ◽  
Kevin Seyssel ◽  
Camille Crézé ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Cardiac Output ◽  
Mean Arterial Pressure ◽  
Arterial Pressure ◽  
Chronic Stress ◽  
Stress Responses ◽  
Mental Stress ◽  
Acute Stress ◽  
Mental Arithmetic ◽  
Hemodynamic Responses ◽  
Hemodynamic Stress

Abstract Background The mechanisms by which chronic stress increases the risk of non-communicable diseases remain poorly understood. On one hand, chronic stress may increase systemic vascular resistance (SVR) and blood pressure, which may lead to blood vessels injury and altered myocardial perfusion. On the other hand, chronic stress may promote the overconsumption of sugar-containing foods and favor obesity. There is indeed evidence that sweet foods are preferentially consumed to alleviate stress responses. The effects of nutritive and non-nutritive sweeteners (NNS) on hemodynamic stress responses remain however largely unknown. Objective/design This study aimed at comparing the effects of sucrose-containing and NNS-containing drinks, as compared to unsweetened water, on hemodynamic responses to acute stress in twelve healthy female subjects. Acute stress responses were elicited by a 30-min mental stress (5-min Stroop’s test alternated with 5-min mental arithmetic) and a 3-min cold pressure test (CPT), each preceded by a resting baseline period. Hemodynamic stress responses were investigated by the repeated measurement of mean arterial pressure and the continuous monitoring of cardiac output by thoracic electrical bioimpedance measurement. SVR was selected as a primary outcome because it is a sensitive measure of hemodynamic responses to acute stress procedures. Results With all three drinks, SVR were not changed with mental stress (P = 0.437), but were increased with CPT (P = 0.045). Both mental stress and CPT increased mean arterial pressure and heart rate (all P < 0.001). Cardiac output increased with mental stress (P < 0.001) and remained unchanged with CPT (P = 0.252). No significant differences in hemodynamic responses were observed between water, sucrose and NNS (stress × condition, all P > 0.05). Conclusions These results demonstrate that sucrose and NNS do not alter hemodynamic responses to two different standardized acute stress protocols.

Acupuncture effects on reflex responses to mental stress in humans

2001 ◽  
Vol 280 (5) ◽  
pp. R1462-R1468 ◽  
Author(s):  
Holly R. Middlekauff ◽  
Jun Liang Yu ◽  
Kakit Hui
Keyword(s):  
Blood Pressure ◽  
Heart Rate ◽  
Mean Arterial Pressure ◽  
Arterial Pressure ◽  
Mental Stress ◽  
Animal Studies ◽  
Muscle Sympathetic Nerve Activity ◽  
Real Acupuncture ◽  
Normal Humans ◽  
Needle Acupuncture

In animal studies, acupuncture has been shown to be sympathoinhibitory, but it is unknown if acupuncture is sympathoinhibitory in humans. Nineteen healthy volunteers underwent mental stress testing pre- and postacupuncture. Muscle sympathetic nerve activity (MSNA), blood pressure, and heart rate during mental stress were compared pre- and postacupuncture. Control acupuncture consisted of acupuncture at nonacupoints and “no-needle” acupuncture. Acupuncture had no effect on resting MSNA, blood pressure, or heart rate. After real acupuncture, the increase in mean arterial pressure (pre- vs. postacupuncture 4.5 vs. 1.7 mmHg, P < 0.001), but not MSNA or heart rate, was blunted during mental stress. Similarly, following nonacupoint acupuncture, the increase in mean arterial pressure was blunted during mental stress (5.4 vs. 2.9 mmHg, P < 0.0003). No-needle acupuncture had no effect on these variables. In conclusion, acupuncture at traditional acupoints, nonacupoints, and no-needle acupuncture does not modulate baseline MSNA or MSNA responses to mental stress in normal humans. Acupuncture significantly attenuates the increase in blood pressure during mental stress. Needling nonacupoints, but not “no-needle” acupuncture, have a similar effect on blood pressure.

scholarly journals Role of respiration in the cardiovascular response to orthostatic and mental stress

2018 ◽  
Vol 314 (6) ◽  
pp. R761-R769 ◽  
Author(s):  
Michal Javorka ◽  
Fatima El-Hamad ◽  
Barbora Czippelova ◽  
Zuzana Turianikova ◽  
Jana Krohova ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Blood Pressure ◽  
Heart Rate ◽  
Respiratory Sinus Arrhythmia ◽  
Mental Stress ◽  
Blood Pressure Variability ◽  
Mental Arithmetic ◽  
Cardiovascular Response ◽  
Respiratory Response ◽  
Sinus Arrhythmia ◽  
Head Up Tilt

The objective of this study was to determine the response of heart rate and blood pressure variability (respiratory sinus arrhythmia, baroreflex sensitivity) to orthostatic and mental stress, focusing on causality and the mediating effect of respiration. Seventy-seven healthy young volunteers (46 women, 31 men) aged 18.4 ± 2.7 yr underwent an experimental protocol comprising supine rest, 45° head-up tilt, recovery, and a mental arithmetic task. Heart rate variability and blood pressure variability were analyzed in the time and frequency domain and modeled as a multivariate autoregressive process where the respiratory volume signal acted as an external driver. During head-up tilt, tidal volume increased while respiratory rate decreased. During mental stress, breathing rate increased and tidal volume was elevated slightly. Respiratory sinus arrhythmia decreased during both interventions. Baroreflex function was preserved during orthostasis but was decreased during mental stress. While sex differences were not observed during baseline conditions, cardiovascular response to orthostatic stress and respiratory response to mental stress was more prominent in men compared with women. The respiratory response to the mental arithmetic tasks was more prominent in men despite a significantly higher subjectively perceived stress level in women. In conclusion, respiration shows a distinct response to orthostatic versus mental stress, mediating cardiovascular variability; it needs to be considered for correct interpretation of heart rate and blood pressure phenomena.

Autonomic Nervous Function during Haemodialysis Assessed by Spectral Analysis of Heart-Rate Variability

1997 ◽  
Vol 92 (4) ◽  
pp. 351-359 ◽  
Author(s):  
Silvio Cavalcanti ◽  
Stefano Severi ◽  
Lorenzo Chiari ◽  
Guido Avanzolini ◽  
Guido Enzmann ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Heart Rate ◽  
Spectral Analysis ◽  
Arterial Pressure ◽  
Blood Volume ◽  
Autonomic Response ◽  
Haemodynamic Instability ◽  
Chronic Haemodialysis ◽  
Heart Period ◽  
Heart Period Variability ◽  
Period Variability

1. Short-term autonomic response to haemodialysis-induced hypovolaemia was studied in 30 patients undergoing chronic haemodialysis by analysing power spectra of heart-period variability. Patients were classified as haemodynamically stable (15 patients) and unstable (15 patients) according to their past history of cardiovascular collapse during the treatment. Blood volume, systolic arterial pressure and heart period were measured during sessions that ended without the occurrence of collapse. 2. No significant differences were observed when comparing blood volume, heart rate and arterial pressure of stable and unstable patients during the dialysis, and the two groups could not be distinguished merely on the basis of these haemodynamic parameters. Conversely, spectral analysis of beat-to-beat heart-period variability showed markedly different power patterns: in stable patients power was mainly in the low-frequency (LF) band (0.06–0.15 Hz), whereas in unstable patients it was mainly in the high-frequency (HF) band (0.15–0.4 Hz). 3. The efficiency of the autonomic response to hypovolaemia was evaluated by the ratio between the powers in the LF and HF bands. Stable patients exhibited an LF/HF power ratio systematically greater than unstable patients during the entire dialysis, and on the basis of this index the two groups were clearly separated. 4. Results obtained with spectral analysis lead us to conclude that reduced efficiency in the autonomic control of cardiovascular functions could be the main cause of the haemodynamic instability of patients prone to collapse.

scholarly journals Quantization of mental stress using various physiological markers

2015 ◽  
Author(s):  
Apoorvagiri ◽  
Mandya Sannegowda Nagananda ◽  
Sandekere Tippeswamy Veerabhadrappa
Keyword(s):  
Heart Rate ◽  
Heart Rate Variability ◽  
Reaction Time ◽  
Simple Reaction Time ◽  
Mental Stress ◽  
Stroop Test ◽  
Simple Reaction ◽  
Study Materials ◽  
Physiological Markers ◽  
Accurate Quantification

The aim of this study is to quantize mental stress by integrating different physiological markers like reaction time, photoplethysmograph (PPG), heart rate variability (HRV) and subjective markers like questionnaire. The study included 10 subjects of age between 22 and 26 years. Study materials include the results of PSS questionnaire, simple reaction time, PPG data, HRV data during a stress inducing stroop test. The study suggests that mental stress can be quantized when stress is induced acquisitively and more accurate quantification of stress can be achieved by integrating many physiological parameters.

scholarly journals Heart Rate Reactivity to Mental Stress in Athlete and Non-Athlete Children

2020 ◽  
Vol 3 (118) ◽  
pp. 4-12
Author(s):  
Krisztina Ábel ◽  
Attila Rausz Szabó ◽  
Attila Szabo
Keyword(s):  
Physical Activity ◽  
Heart Rate ◽  
Psychosocial Stress ◽  
Mental Stress ◽  
Classical Music ◽  
Mental Arithmetic ◽  
Protective Role ◽  
Heart Rate Reactivity ◽  
Arithmetic Task ◽  
Before And After

Background. Research suggests that exercise training and/or physical fitness may be associated with lower heart rate reactivity and faster recovery from psychosocial stress. This relationship was rarely studied in children despite the potential protective role of physical activity in stress that may start in early life stages. Methods. In this laboratory investigation we examined 18 athlete and non-athlete children before, during and following exposure to mental stress which consisted of the Stroop Color Word Task and a mental arithmetic task, both distracted by classical music, in a counterbalanced research design. Results. The results based on absolute heart rate measures suggested that athletes exhibited lower heart rates in the stress-anticipation period as well as during the stress period than non-athletes. However, based on relative measures these differences vanished. The two groups of children did not differ in perceived arousal, perceived stressfulness of the mental tasks, and the self-reported feeling states before and after stress. Further, they did not differ in their performance on the two stress-eliciting active-coping tasks as indicated by the number of correct answers. Conclusion. These results appear to suggest that athletic status in children is unrelated to heart rate reactivity and other subjective psychological experiences before, during and after acute psychosocial stress.  Keywords: adolescent, exercise, fitness, physical activity, relative measures.

Blunted autonomic response to standing up and head-up tilt in individuals with intellectual disabilities

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Thessa Irena Maria Hilgenkamp ◽  
Elizabeth C. Lefferts ◽  
Daniel W. White ◽  
Tracy Baynard ◽  
Bo Fernhall
Keyword(s):  
Blood Pressure ◽  
Heart Rate ◽  
Mean Arterial Pressure ◽  
Arterial Pressure ◽  
Intellectual Disabilities ◽  
Autonomic Response ◽  
Control Group ◽  
Standing Up ◽  
Head Up Tilt ◽  
Individuals With Intellectual Disabilities

Previous research suggests individuals with intellectual disabilities (ID) may experience autonomic dysfunction, however this has not been thoroughly investigated. PURPOSE: To compare the autonomic response to standing up (active orthostasis) and head up tilt (passive orthostasis) in individuals with ID to a control group without ID. METHODS: Eighteen individuals with and 18 individuals without ID were instrumented with an ECG-lead and finger-photoplethysmography for continuous heart rate and blood pressure recordings. The active and passive orthostasis protocol consisted of 10 minutes supine rest, 10 minutes standing, 10 minutes supine recovery, 5 minutes head-up tilt at 70 degrees, followed by 10 minutes supine recovery. The last five minutes of each position was used to calculate hemodynamic and autonomic function (time- and frequency-domain heart rate and blood pressure variability measures and baroreflex sensitivity). RESULTS Individuals with ID had higher heart rate during baseline and recovery (p<0.05), and an attenuated hemodynamic (stroke volume, heart rate) and heart rate variability response to active and passive orthostasis (interaction effect p<0.05) compared to individuals without ID. Mean arterial pressure (MAP) was higher in individuals with ID at all timepoints. CONCLUSION Individuals with ID demonstrated altered hemodynamic and autonomic regulation compared to a sex- and age-matched control group, evidenced by a higher mean arterial pressure and a reduced response in parasympathetic modulation to active and passive orthostasis.

scholarly journals Neurovascular responses to mental stress in prehypertensive humans

2011 ◽  
Vol 110 (1) ◽  
pp. 76-82 ◽  
Author(s):  
Christopher E. Schwartz ◽  
John J. Durocher ◽  
Jason R. Carter
Keyword(s):  
Heart Rate ◽  
Mental Stress ◽  
Sympathetic Nerve Activity ◽  
Mental Arithmetic ◽  
Pressor Response ◽  
Muscle Sympathetic Nerve Activity ◽  
Vascular Conductance ◽  
Nerve Activity ◽  
Vascular Responses ◽  
Forearm Vascular Conductance

Neurovascular responses to mental stress have been linked to several cardiovascular diseases, including hypertension. Mean arterial pressure (MAP), muscle sympathetic nerve activity (MSNA), and forearm vascular responses to mental stress are well documented in normotensive (NT) subjects, but responses in prehypertensive (PHT) subjects remain unclear. We tested the hypothesis that PHT would elicit a more dramatic increase of MAP during mental stress via augmented MSNA and blunted forearm vascular conductance (FVC). We examined 17 PHT (systolic 120–139 and/or diastolic 80–89 mmHg; 22 ± 1 yr) and 18 NT (systolic < 120 and diastolic < 80 mmHg; 23 ± 2 yr) subjects. Heart rate, MAP, MSNA, FVC, and calf vascular conductance were measured during 5 min of baseline and 5 min of mental stress (mental arithmetic). Mental stress increased MAP and FVC in both groups, but the increases in MAP were augmented (Δ 10 ± 1 vs. Δ14 ± 1 mmHg; P < 0.05), and the increases in FVC were blunted (Δ95 ± 14 vs. Δ37 ± 8%; P < 0.001) in PHT subjects. Mental stress elicited similar increases in MSNA (Δ7 ± 2 vs. Δ6 ± 2 bursts/min), heart rate (Δ21 ± 3 vs. Δ18 ± 3 beats/min), and calf vascular conductance (Δ29 ± 10 vs. Δ19 ± 5%) in NT and PHT subjects, respectively. In conclusion, mental stress elicits an augmented pressor response in PHT subjects. This augmentation appears to be associated with altered forearm vascular, but not MSNA, responses to mental stress.

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