Behavioral stress responses in premenopausal and postmenopausal women and the effects of estrogen

Lindheim, Steven R.; Legro, Richard S.; Bernstein, Leslie; Stanczyk, Frank Z.; Vijod, Marcela A.; Presser, Steven C.; Løbo, Rogerio A.

doi:10.1016/0002-9378(92)91783-7

Cited by 205 publications

(85 citation statements)

References 18 publications

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“…Our results are consistent with studies in which estradiol administration was associated with reduced cardiovascular responses to stress in women [14] and with reduced catecholamine secretion in young men [6]. Since the subjects were studied 3 times in a randomized order it seems unlikely that a mixing up between stressor and habituation occurred in our experiment.…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 92%

“…Few and contradictory studies [11, 12] have been performed in menopausal women in order to establish modifications, if any, of the sympathoadrenal system activity and its consequences on blood pressure control and on other complications of menopause. Owens et al [13] described an increased cardiovascular response to mental stress in postmenopause with only minor differences in catecholamine secretion; exogenous estrogen has also been found to lower the cardiovascular responses to stress [14, 15]. However others reported no difference in the catecholamine response to mental challenge during the follicular and luteal phase in fertile women [16].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Acute Estradiol and Progesterone Administration Reduced Cardiovascular and Catecholamine Responses to Mental Stress in Menopausal Women

Rió¹,

Velardo²,

Menozzi³

et al. 1998

Neuroendocrinology

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Steroid hormones are involved in the regulation of sympathoadrenal activity. Since the effect of sex steroids on the cardiovascular system and catecholamine secretion could also be exerted through an acute, nongenomic mechanism, we have studied the response to mental stress (color word test, CWT) in a group of 15 menopausal women during estrogen (100 µg of estradiol by patch), progesterone (100 mg i.m.) or placebo administration. Systolic blood pressure (SBP) increased during CWT in the three sessions (F = 11.0, p < 0.001) but the area under the curve of SBP was higher during placebo (2,855 ± 131 mm Hg·min) than during estradiol (2,585 ± 139 mm Hg·min) and progesterone (2,553 ± 179 mm Hg·min, p < 0.05 for both). Plasma epinephrine increased during CWT in the three sessions (F = 31.1, p < 0.001) and the plasma epinephrine response to mental stress was higher during placebo than during estradiol administration (F = 4.3, p < 0.01). The area under the curve of epinephrine was 10,342 ± 1,348 pmol/min·l during placebo and 7,280 ± 818 pmol/min·l during estradiol (p < 0.03). The plasma glycerol levels at the end of CWT were higher during placebo (0.26 ± 0.04 nmol/l) than during estradiol (0.19 ± 0.03 mmol/l) and progesterone (0.17 ± 0.04 mmol/l) administration (p < 0.05 for both). No significant differences were found in the responses of diastolic blood pressure, heart rate, norepinephrine and cortisol to mental stress during placebo and estradiol or progesterone administration. This study demonstrates that acute steroid administration is able to modify the cardiovascular and catecholamine response to mental stress in menopausal women.

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Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 92%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Acute Estradiol and Progesterone Administration Reduced Cardiovascular and Catecholamine Responses to Mental Stress in Menopausal Women

Rió¹,

Velardo²,

Menozzi³

et al. 1998

Neuroendocrinology

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“…Lindheim et al [39]examined the endocrine response to psychological stress in 49 healthy women, of which 13 were premenopausal (age range 23–41 years) and 36 postmenopausal (age range 47–71 years). The stressor consisted of four different tasks: serial subtraction, the Stroop color-word test, a speech task and the cold pressor test.…”

Section: The Psychoendocrine Reaction To Laboratory Stressorsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The stressor consisted of four different tasks: serial subtraction, the Stroop color-word test, a speech task and the cold pressor test. In response to this stress protocol, a significant increase in ACTH, cortisol, norepinephrine and androstenedione levels was reported in both groups [39]. …”

Section: The Psychoendocrine Reaction To Laboratory Stressorsmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Psychological Stress and Neuroendocrine Function in Humans: The Last Two Decades of Research

Biondi

Picardi

1999

Psychother Psychosom

313

175

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This paper reviews experimental contributions published in the last two decades and exploring the effect of emotional stress on neuroendocrine function in healthy humans. Laboratory studies allow standardization of the stressor and better control for known confounding factors. Commonly used stressors are mental arithmetics, speech tasks, the Stroop test, videogame playing, films or videotapes and interviews. Little is known about the generalizability of laboratory results, with some studies suggesting great caution in extrapolating data to real-life stress conditions. Another strategy is studying the psychoendocrine reaction to real-life stressors, such as bereavement or anticipated loss, academic examinations, everyday work and parachute jumping. The effects of different stressors on neuroendocrine axes are reviewed, as well as the influence of gender, age, personality, coping style, social support, biological and nonbiological interventions. The subjective perception of the situation is probably a main determinant of the psychoendocrine response pattern. In fact, marked variability in individual responses to a variety of stressors has frequently been observed. Evidently, the ‘objective’ characteristics of a given event are not the only determinants of reaction to the event itself. According to a constructivistic perspective, every given stressor has a strictly personal and idiosyncratic meaning and loses its ‘objective’ characteristics. Of course, biological factors may also play a part. In any case, it is mandatory to overcome a rigid dichotomy between psychological and biological processes. Dualistic conceptions which imply a determination of the physical by the psychological or vice versa should give place to a systemic conception, which implies mutual, circular interactions.

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Environmental change and cardiovascular disease: A new complexity

Pollard¹

1997

Am. J. Phys. Anthropol.

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Cardiovascular disease has for many years been considered a lifestyle disease, caused by westernisation or modernisation. The most important lifestyle risk factors are thought to be diet (particularly high levels of saturated fats and excess salt), lack of physical activity, obesity, psychosocial stress and smoking, all of which are identified with modern living in industrial societies. This paradigm goes some way towards explaining observed inter‐ and intrapopulation variation in the prevalence of cardiovascular disease, but does not explain all such variation. It is important that physical anthropologists start considering new hypotheses concerning quite different risk factors. It has been suggested that undernutrition in fetal and early infant life may program physiological systems such that later exposure to lifestyle risk factors are particularly dangerous. A quite different theory links infection with certain bacteria, and perhaps viruses, to increased risk of cardiovascular disease. Both these proposed risk factors are much more prevalent in developing countries and poorer populations, although they may only become important when well‐known risk factors are introduced too. The possible protective role of estrogen in women and the light which anthropologists' work on ovarian function throws on its potential for impact in different populations are also discussed. Future attempts to explain variation in cardiovascular disease risk will require a new complexity of approach. It will be particularly interesting to consider the interaction between maternal and infant undernutrition, infectious disease load, hormonal changes and cardiovascular disease in modernising populations. Anthropologists are well placed to undertake such investigations. Yrbk Phys Anthropol 40:1–24, 1997. © 1997 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.

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Behavioral stress responses in premenopausal and postmenopausal women and the effects of estrogen

Cited by 205 publications

References 18 publications

Acute Estradiol and Progesterone Administration Reduced Cardiovascular and Catecholamine Responses to Mental Stress in Menopausal Women

Acute Estradiol and Progesterone Administration Reduced Cardiovascular and Catecholamine Responses to Mental Stress in Menopausal Women

Psychological Stress and Neuroendocrine Function in Humans: The Last Two Decades of Research

Environmental change and cardiovascular disease: A new complexity

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