Mental Stress Test Could Predict Chest Pain in People With Heart Ailments
A new study released earlier today indicates that stress-induced activity in the brain's inferior frontal lobe may have a direct link to chest pain among patients suffering from coronary heart disease.
Chest discomfort or pain resulting from the insufficient flow of blood to the heart is also known as angina pectoris or stable angina.
According to a study, angina occurs as a result of coronary artery disease. The research also indicates that psychological factors, including mental stress, can result in angina. However, not too much information is known about the brain mechanisms involved.
This particular work is designed to gauge how activity in the brain's inferior frontal lobe—the brain's area that's linked to stress and regulation of emotion, and impacts the seriousness of self-reported angina.
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The Objective of the Study
According to Amit Shah, MD, MSCR, the study's lead investigator, their work aims to understand the degree to which healthcare firms need to integrate stress and other psychological aspects when analyzing and treating angina. Shah is also an epidemiology assistant professor at Emory University's Rollins School of Public Health.
The study also presents an essential proof-of-concept, showing the reactivity to stress, which is vital when considering the treatment of angina.
Participants
A total of 148 participating volunteers were observed during the conduct of research from 2011 to 2014. These participants—63 years of age on average—had coronary artery disease.
According to researchers, they comprised of 69 percent men and 31 percent of women, as well. Additionally, the participating group had undergone testing of mentally stressful activities in a clinical background.
They went through brain imaging and cardiac imaging, which was conducted in combination with the tests.
Essentially, research respondents were evaluated via three assessments that were performed for two weeks. These tests included mental stress with brain imaging, a mental stress assessment combined with heart imaging, and a chemical stress test or exercise combined with heart imaging.
During the series of tests, the group observed respondents for any occurrence of chest pain. An additional set of questions related to chest pain and cardiovascular events was evaluated after two years.
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Angina Observed
The authors observed aspects related to the seriousness of the angina of participants. They were able to observe that brain activity detected in the inferior frontal lobe presented the strongest link to self-reported angina at baseline, as well as, at the two-year follow-up appointment.
As a result, participants who complained to have experienced monthly, weekly, or even daily symptoms of angina had higher inferior frontal lobe activity, reacting to mental stress at both baselines.
Participants who reported experience of angina during their mental stress assessment with cardiac imaging had higher inferior frontal lobe activation than those who did not experience ongoing chest pain while they were undergoing mental stress testing.
Relative to the result, there was a link between inferior frontal lobe activation during the stress and level of change in frequency of angina at a two-year follow-up, proposing that brain-related changes might forecast worsened angina in the future.
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