title: Effects of a behavioral stress-management program on anxiety, mood, self-esteem, and T-cell count in HIV positive men.
abstract: This study evaluated the effects of a behavioral stress-management program on anxiety, mood, self-esteem, and T-cell count in a group of HIV-positive men who were asymptomatic except for T-cell counts below 400. The program consisted of 20 biweekly sessions of progressive muscle relaxation and electromyograph biofeedback-assisted relaxation training, meditation, and hypnosis. Ten subjects were randomly assigned to either a treatment group of a no-treatment control group, and the 2 groups were compared on pre- to posttreatment changes in the dependent measures. Analysis showed that, compared with the no-treatment group, the treatment group showed significant improvement on all the dependent measures, which was maintained at a 1-mo. follow-up. Since stress is known to compromise the immune system, these results suggest that stress management to reduce arousal of the nervous system and anxiety would be an appropriate component of a treatment regimen for HIV infection.
authors.forename: D N
authors.initials: DN
authors.lastname: Taylor
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000339:Affect / Q000502:physiology*; D001007:Anxiety / Q000276:immunology / Q000523:psychology / Q000628:therapy*; D001143:Arousal / Q000502:physiology; D001521:Behavior Therapy / Q000379:methods*; D001676:Biofeedback, Psychology; D003131:Combined Modality Therapy; D004576:Electromyography; D015658:HIV Infections / Q000276:immunology / Q000523:psychology*; D006801:Humans; D006990:Hypnosis; D018655:Lymphocyte Count; D008297:Male; D009126:Muscle Relaxation / Q000502:physiology; D011598:Psychoneuroimmunology; D012649:Self Concept