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Mental stress and physical exercise increase platelet-dependent thrombin generation

T A Kawano1, N Aoki, M Homori

  • 1Second Department of Internal Medicine, Kyorin University School of Medicine, Mitaka, Tokyo, Japan.

Heart and Vessels
|January 5, 2002
PubMed

Insights

Physical exercise and mental stress both increase thrombin generation, a key factor in blood clots. Beta-blocker therapy, but not aspirin, effectively suppressed this increase, suggesting a potential therapeutic target.

Area of Science:

  • Cardiovascular Physiology
  • Hemostasis and Thrombosis

Background:

  • Thrombin generation is implicated in thrombotic disorders and acute coronary syndromes.
  • Mental stress is linked to acute coronary syndromes, but the mechanism remains unclear.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate the impact of physical exercise and mental stress on platelet-dependent thrombin generation.
  • To explore the role of catecholamines and specific inhibitors in stress-induced thrombin generation.

Main Methods:

  • Twelve healthy men underwent treadmill exercise and mental arithmetic stress tests.
  • Measurements included platelet-dependent thrombin generation, catecholamines, thrombin-antithrombin III complex (TAT), plasmin-alpha2 plasmin inhibitor complex (PIC), and plasminogen activator inhibitor-1 (PAI-1).
  • Interventions included aspirin and metoprolol to assess their effects on thrombin generation.

Main Results:

  • Both exercise and mental stress significantly increased thrombin generation.
  • Exercise led to transient elevations in catecholamines (epinephrine, norepinephrine, dopamine), while mental stress elevated norepinephrine.
  • Metoprolol, a beta-blocker, inhibited the increase in thrombin generation, whereas aspirin did not.

Conclusions:

  • Physical exercise and mental stress activate platelet-dependent thrombin generation.
  • Beta-blocker therapy can suppress exercise and stress-induced thrombin generation.
  • The findings suggest a role for beta-adrenergic pathways in mediating thrombin generation during stress.

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