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2283878 
Journal Article 
The effect of acute mental stress on limb vasodilation is unrelated to total peripheral resistance 
Paine, NJ; Ring, C; Bosch, JosA; Mcintyre, D; Van Zanten, JetJCSV 
2013 
1 
Psychophysiology
ISSN: 0048-5772
EISSN: 1469-8986 
50 
7 
680-690 
23656692 
WOS:000320118100009 
Mental stress can trigger myocardial infarction, with poor vascular responses to stress implicated as a pathway. Vascular stress reactivity can be assessed by different methods, such as total peripheral resistance (TPR) and forearm blood flow (FBF). Little is known about how these vascular assessments are linked. This was examined in two separate studies. Healthy men (Study 1: N=29, Study 2: N=23) completed rest and mental arithmetic (Study 1: 8min, Study 2: 16min). In both studies, heart rate, mean arterial pressure, and FBF increased in response to stress. In Study 1, no changes in TPR were seen, but Study 2 found stress-induced increases in TPR. FBF was not linked to TPR at any time (all ps>.05). It appears that limb vasculature and TPR responses to stress do not give the same information about impairments of the vasculature. These findings are relevant to the interpretation of prior research findings and the design of future studies on stress and vascular responses. 
Mental stress; Forearm blood flow; Total peripheral resistance