Psychoneuroendocrinology
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Psychoneuroendocrinology · Jan 2011
Randomized Controlled TrialEndocrine and psychological stress responses in a simulated emergency situation.
Several studies have assessed the effects of training using patient simulation systems on medical skills. However, endocrine and psychological stress responses in a patient simulation situation and the relationship between stress reactivity and medical performance have been studied rarely, so far. ⋯ A simulated emergency situation is a profound stressor. The positive relationship between endocrine stress responsiveness in a standard laboratory situation and medical performance in a simulated emergency situation indicates that high stress responsiveness might be a predictor of good performance. At the same time the high stress response might counteract educational efforts associated with training using high-fidelity patient simulation.
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Psychoneuroendocrinology · Jan 2011
Controlled Clinical TrialBaseline 'state anxiety' influences HPA-axis sensitivity to one sham-controlled HF-rTMS session applied to the right dorsolateral prefrontal cortex.
Although negative results have been reported, an important aspect of the physiology of repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS) could be related to the endocrinological response of the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis, such as cortisol secretion. Because endocrinological responses are influenced by anxiety states, this could influence the effect of rTMS in healthy individuals. In this sham-controlled, "single blind" crossover study, we examined whether one session of HF-rTMS could affect the HPA-system, when taking into account individual state anxiety scores based on the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory (STAI). ⋯ When taking into account individual STAI-state scores, we found that healthy women scoring higher on the STAI-state displayed a significantly more sensitive HPA-system, resulting in salivary cortisol concentration increases after real HF-rTMS, compared to those scoring lower on this anxiety scale. Our results indicate that healthy women scoring high on state anxiety display a more sensitive HPA-system when receiving one right-sided HF-rTMS session. Our findings suggest that the incorporation of individual anxiety states in experimental rTMS research could add further information about its neurobiological influences on the HPA-system.
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Psychoneuroendocrinology · Oct 2010
Randomized Controlled TrialCortisol, reaction time test and health among offshore shift workers.
The stress hormone cortisol shows a pronounced endogenous diurnal rhythm, which is affected by the sleep/wake cycle, meals and activity. Shift work and especially night work disrupts the sleep/wake cycle and causes a desynchronization of the natural biological rhythms. Therefore, different shift schedules may have different impact on performance at work and health. ⋯ We found no increase in health complaints from swing shift or reaction time in the shift from night to day work. Recovery from night shift takes longer time.
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Psychoneuroendocrinology · Oct 2010
Controlled Clinical TrialThe other side of the curve: examining the relationship between pre-stressor physiological responses and stress reactivity.
There is widespread consensus that stress induces dramatic physiological changes, but no agreement on the quantitative parameters that are appropriate to measure these responses. More importantly, the interpretation of various stress measurements, and how individual responses should be evaluated, has not been properly addressed. Even the definition of baseline, against which stress responses must be measured, is not clearly established. ⋯ Thus, the magnitude of the difference in cortisol and alpha-amylase between arrival and 1h after arrival was a predictor of subsequent stress reactivity. These findings suggest that different psychosocial profiles may be reflected in cortisol and alpha-amylase changes. For this reason: (1) a recovery period after arrival is essential to establish a baseline, (2) the difference between arrival and post-recovery period baseline should be included in experimental designs as a predictive variable, and (3) transformation of individual measures into proportional changes relative to the arrival sample is very likely to obscure important underlying individual differences.
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Psychoneuroendocrinology · Jul 2010
The BDNF Val66Met polymorphism affects HPA-axis reactivity to acute stress.
Growing evidence suggests that individual differences in HPA-axis reactivity to psychosocial stress are partly due to heritable influences. However, knowledge about the role of specific genetic variants remains very limited to date. Since brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) not only exhibits neurotrophic actions but is also involved in the regulation of hypothalamic neuropeptides, we investigated the role of a common functional polymorphism within the BDNF gene (BDNF Val66Met) in the context of endocrine and cardiovascular stress reactivity. ⋯ Our findings of a diminished endocrine and cardiovascular stress response in healthy male adults is consistent with a previously published study and adds further evidence for a crucial role of the BDNF Val66Met polymorphism in the modulation of stress reactivity.