The effects of effort-reward imbalance on inflammatory and cardiovascular responses to mental stress.
OBJECTIVE
We examined the influence of effort-reward imbalance, a stressful feature of the work environment, on cardiovascular and inflammatory responses to acute mental stress.


METHODS
Ninety-two healthy men (mean age, 33.1 years) in full-time employment were recruited. Effort-reward imbalance was measured using a self-administered questionnaire. Blood, for the analysis of C-reactive protein (CRP) and von Willebrand factor (vWF) antigen, was sampled at baseline and 10 minutes after two mental stress tasks, whereas cardiovascular activity was measured throughout.


RESULTS
Plasma CRP and vWF were significantly elevated following the stress period, and cardiovascular activity was increased during and after both tasks (p < .001). Multiple linear regression analysis adjusted for age, body mass index, and baseline levels revealed that men with higher effort-reward imbalance demonstrated greater CRP and vWF responses to the stress tasks but blunted cardiovascular responses. Inflammatory and cardiovascular responses to stress appeared to be unrelated.


CONCLUSIONS
These findings suggest that the association between chronic work stress and cardiovascular disease risk may be mediated in part by heightened acute inflammatory responsivity. These responses appear not to result from differences in sympathoadrenal activation.
Hamer
Mark
M
Psychobiology Group, Department of Epidemiology and Public Health, University College London, 1-19 Torrington Place, London WC1E 6BT, UK. m.hamer@ucl.ac.uk
Williams
Emily
E
Vuonovirta
Raisa
R
Giacobazzi
Pierluigi
P
Gibson
E Leigh
EL
Steptoe
Andrew
A
D000328:Adult; D002097:C-Reactive Protein / Q000032:analysis / Q000276:immunology; D002318:Cardiovascular Diseases / Q000097:blood / Q000276:immunology*; D004651:Employment / Q000523:psychology*; D006801:Humans; D007249:Inflammation / Q000097:blood / Q000276:immunology*; D008297:Male; D012201:Reward; D013315:Stress, Psychological / Q000097:blood / Q000276:immunology*; D014841:von Willebrand Factor / Q000032:analysis / Q000276:immunology
D014841:von Willebrand Factor; D002097:C-Reactive Protein