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Stress in cardiovascular diseases
Tobias Esch1, George B Stefano, Gregory L Fricchione
1The Mind/ Body Medical Institute, CareGroup and Department of Medicine, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA 02115, USA. tesch@caregroup.harvard.edu
Insights
Stress significantly impacts cardiovascular health, potentially causing or worsening conditions like hypertension and heart attack. While often detrimental, the exact effect depends on individual factors and stress type.
Area of Science:
- Cardiology
- Psychophysiology
- Internal Medicine
Background:
- Stress is a significant factor influencing physiological processes.
- Its connection to cardiovascular diseases (CVDs) warrants detailed examination.
- Understanding this link is crucial for modern medical practice.
Purpose of the Study:
- To analyze the evidence linking stress to cardiovascular diseases.
- To determine if stress causes or exacerbates CVDs.
- To explore the pathophysiological mechanisms involved.
Main Methods:
- Illustration of the stress phenomenon.
- Examination of stress impact on the circulatory system.
- Description of stress's role in hypertension, atherosclerosis, and myocardial infarction.
Main Results:
- Stress plays a major role in circulatory system (patho)physiology.
- It can have both ameliorating and detrimental effects on CVDs.
- Outcomes are modulated by stress levels, duration, and individual predispositions (genetics, history).
Conclusions:
- Stress significantly influences CVD susceptibility, progression, and outcomes.
- Individual differences and stress type (e.g., 'adequate' acute stress) can alter effects.
- Developing new therapeutic strategies addressing the stress-CVD link is essential.
Objective:
Evidence for a connection between stress and selected cardiovascular diseases is analyzed. Does stress cause or exacerbate cardiovascular diseases?
Method:
The stress phenomenon is illustrated and the impact of stress on the circulatory system is examined. In particular, the pathophysiological significance of stress in hypertension, atherosclerosis, coronary artery disease, myocardial infarction (and others) is described.
Results:
Stress plays a major role in various (patho)physiological processes associated with the circulatory system. Thereby, it potentially has ameliorating or detrimental capacities. However, with regard to cardiovascular diseases, stress most often is related to deleterious results. The specific outcome depends on multiple variables (amount of stress, duration of its influence, patient's history/predisposition, genetic components -- as they all may alter functions of the basic stress response components: the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis and the sympathoadrenal medullary system).
Conclusions:
Stress has a major impact upon the circulatory system. It plays a significant role in susceptibility, progress, and outcome of cardiovascular diseases. Subjective or individual differences have also to be taken into account. Stress, especially 'adequate' acute stress - stress that is not 'overwhelming' - may improve performance and thus be beneficial in certain cases. The close relationship between stress and cardiovascular diseases may represent an important aspect of modern medicine. New therapeutic strategies have to be set in place.