Effects of daily stress on autonomic cardiac control in patients with coronary artery disease.
Emotional stress has been implicated in the development and progression of coronary artery disease, with 1 proposed causal pathway being changes in cardiac autonomic tone. One hundred thirty-five patients with coronary artery disease underwent 48 hours of ambulatory electrocardiographic monitoring and completed activity and mood diaries every 20 minutes while awake. Random-effects model analyses associated higher levels of negative emotions (e.g., anger, stress, sadness) with decreases in high- and low-frequency power, whereas higher levels of positive emotion were related to an increase in low-frequency power, independent of age, posture, and medications.
Bacon
Simon L
SL
Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Duke University Medical Center, Box 3119, Durham, NC 27710, USA. s_l_bacon@yahoo.com
Watkins
Lana L
LL
Babyak
Michael
M
Sherwood
Andrew
A
Hayano
Junichiro
J
Hinderliter
Alan L
AL
Waugh
Robert
R
Blumenthal
James A
JA
D003324:Coronary Artery Disease / Q000209:etiology / Q000503:physiopathology*; D015716:Electrocardiography, Ambulatory; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D017202:Myocardial Ischemia / Q000209:etiology / Q000503:physiopathology; D016032:Randomized Controlled Trials as Topic; D013315:Stress, Psychological / Q000150:complications*