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Increased abdominal pain during final examinations

A Harris1, B J Martin

  • 1Medical Sciences Program, Indiana University, Bloomington 47405.

Digestive Diseases and Sciences
|January 1, 1994
PubMed
Summary

Exam stress in students triggers physiological stress responses and increases abdominal pain. However, real-world examination stress does not significantly alter gastrointestinal transit time in humans.

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Area of Science:

  • Gastroenterology
  • Psychoneuroimmunology
  • Human Physiology

Background:

  • Physiological and psychological stress are known to affect gastrointestinal function.
  • Limited research exists on how real-world stress impacts gut function in free-living individuals.
  • Laboratory studies suggest stress alters gastrointestinal function, but human studies in naturalistic settings are needed.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate the effects of real-world stress on gastrointestinal function in humans.
  • To compare gut alterations during stressful examination periods with control conditions.
  • To determine if examination stress alters orocecal transit time and gastrointestinal symptoms.

Main Methods:

  • Studied 16 medical and premedical students during final written examinations and a control day.
  • Measured physiological stress markers: serum cortisol, ACTH, heart rate, and arterial blood pressure.
  • Assessed gastrointestinal function via orocecal liquid transit time and subjective symptom reporting (gas, diarrhea, borborygmi, abdominal pain).

Main Results:

  • Examination stress significantly elevated cortisol, ACTH, heart rate, blood pressure, and subjective anxiety.
  • No significant change was observed in orocecal liquid transit time between control and examination days.
  • Reported abdominal pain increased significantly during examinations, while other gastrointestinal symptoms remained unchanged.

Conclusions:

  • Examination stress in humans induces a physiological stress response and exacerbates abdominal pain.
  • Real-world examination stress does not alter orocecal transit time in students.
  • Gastrointestinal symptoms can increase under stress without changes in gut transit time.

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