Impact Of Psychological Stress Research Articles

The Impact of Mental Health on Patient Outcomes in Peripheral Arterial Disease and Critical Limb Threatening Ischemia and Potential Avenues to Treatment

The physical consequences of peripheral arterial disease (PAD) are well established, however, the impact of comorbid mental health disorders such as depression and anxiety are not well understood. The impact of psychological stress is not only associated with worse perioperative morbidity and mortality but also with a physiologic cascade that accelerates plaque formation. Increasing screening to identify and subsequently treat comorbid mental health disorders is an integral next step in improving outcomes in PAD management. Failure to adequately address social and psychological impact on PAD patients will further widen the gap in disparities faced by high risk and disenfranchised populations. Integration of mental health professionals, addiction specialists, and community navigators into multidisciplinary care teams can bolster support for PAD patients and improve outcomes.

The Impact of Psychological Stress on Personal Income, Physical Health and Entrepreneurial Intentions among Entrepreneurs

Entrepreneurial intention plays a pivotal role within entrepreneurship ecosystems, acting as a catalyst for economic growth and innovation by inspiring individuals to embrace entrepreneurship as a viable career pursuit. The present research delves into the intricate dynamics between stress, entrepreneurial intention, personal income, and physical health within Egypt's entrepreneurial landscape. Grounded in a quantitative analysis of 286 valid samples and utilizing SmartPLS 4, this study unveils compelling insights. It reveals a stark negative correlation between stress and entrepreneurial intention, personal income, and physical health while highlighting the affirmative association between individual income, physical health, and entrepreneurial intention among Egyptian entrepreneurs. These findings underscore the imperative of integrating stress management and mental health support mechanisms into entrepreneurship support programs, offering entrepreneurs invaluable resources to fortify their resolve and adaptability in navigating the entrepreneurial journey.

Impact of Psychological Stress on Emotion Regulation Strategies during COVID-19 in Young Adults with Self-Reported Social Anxiety

Background: This study sought to evaluate the relations among expressive suppression (ES), cognitive reappraisal (CR), and stress during COVID-19 in young adults with self-reported social anxiety. We hypothesized that social anxiety would positively relate to ES but negatively relate to CR. Furthermore, we predicted that stress severity would moderate the relation between social anxiety and emotion regulation, where higher reports of stress and social anxiety would predict greater ES and lower CR. Methods: Participants were young adults (N = 84; 18-24 years old) who completed self-report measures of social anxiety, stress, and emotion regulation amid COVID-19. Zero-order correlations assessed relations among these variables. Moderation analyses assessed stress as a moderator of the relation between social anxiety and emotion regulation. Results: Results indicated that social anxiety was significantly correlated with ES but not CR. The relation between social anxiety and ES was moderated by stress severity, such that as stress increased, individuals with higher social anxiety engaged in less ES. Stress did not moderate the relation between social anxiety and CR. Conclusions: The current study suggests that self-reported social anxiety is positively associated with ES (but not CR) during COVID-19; however, individuals with high social anxiety and perceived stress engaged in less ES.

The psychological impact of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic on health-care workers in primary health-care centers in resource-poor settings.

Health-care workers' psychological status is essential to Preventive control measures in a weak and unstable health system with poor infrastructural constraints. This study examines the psychological impact of the ongoing coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic on the health-care providers working in primary health-care settings in Sudan. This is a health facility-based cross-sectional study conducted in primary health-care units in White Nile State, Sudan. The psychological impact of stress and anxiety was determined using the Depression Anxiety Stress Scale 21 (DASS-21). A self-administered questionnaire measured depression, anxiety, and stress. The population of this study included health professionals working in health centers, including physicians, nurses, technicians, pharmacists, and other support staff. A total of 167 health professionals were systematically recruited. The mean anxiety score in the study population was 8.26 & 9.0 (corresponding to mild anxiety). Participants without anxiety constituted 26.35% (n = 44) of the participants. Women were significantly more likely to be affected than men (P = 0.0). Age (21-40 years), female nurses, and other health-care workers (anesthesiology, public health, health education, occupational health, psychiatry, etc.) could be strong predictors of psychological disorders (P-value of 0.0). This study provided evidence for primary health care at its preparatory levels, as they are the first line of protection against the COVID-19 pandemic. Addressing the high-risk population is a high priority in the preliminary phase.

Влияние разных видов стресса на биопсихологический возраст

<p style="text-align: justify;">The article presents an analysis of modern research on the problem of the impact of stress on the biopsychological age of a person. Understanding the reasons for the increase in biopsychological age is important in the search for ways to slow down premature aging. Various types of stress are considered: combat stress (“war stress”), professional (work), retirement, COVID-19-related stress, as well as social isolation stress (“loneliness stress”). It is revealed that the “Stress of war” accelerates the pace of psychological (subjective), biological, epigenetic aging, causes a mismatch of biological and psychological ages. The consequence of occupational stress is an increase in the number of biomarkers of aging. Retirement stress and “loneliness stress” increase the biological age relative to the calendar. The impact of psychological stress in old age, as well as stress associated with an infectious disease, increases the immunological age and enhances immunological aging. All types of stress reduce the quality of life, increase the risk of premature aging and premature death. Based on the results of the review, it was suggested that one of the most effective factors capable of minimizing the harmful effects of stress on a person's biopsychological age is the psychological security of the individual.</p>

A Study on the Cultivation of Psychological Stress Management Ability of Medical Personnel Based on Case Teaching

Medical work is often accompanied by high-intensity pressure and emotional load, and the impact of psychological stress on medical personnel cannot be ignored. In such a background, case teaching, as a teaching method with strong practicability and high interactivity, provides an effective way to cultivate the psychological stress-handling ability of medical personnel. This paper discusses the application of case teaching around the cultivation of the psychological stress-handling ability of medical personnel. The importance of psychological stress in medical personnel as well as its purpose and significance are introduced, as well as the advantages of case teaching in the cultivation of psychological stress handling ability and the limitations and challenges faced by case teaching. This is followed by a brief overview of the key steps of identifying training objectives and needs, collecting and screening suitable cases, designing case teaching activities, implementing case teaching, and assessment and feedback. Effective psychological stress management skills can help medical staff better cope with stress and challenges at work, enhance their psychological resilience and adaptability, and thus improve work effectiveness and provide better patient care.

Can “Smart Homework” Achieve the Goal of Chinese “Double Reduction” Policy to Reduce Burden and Improve Quality?—The Positive and Negative Effects of “Smart Homework” on Students

The application of information technology provides technical support for achieving the requirements of reducing burden and improving quality in the Chinese “Double Reduction” Policy. Based on the analysis of the mechanism and path of “Smart Homework” (an educational tool that applies artificial intelligence technology) to reduce the burden and improve the quality of Chinese Jiangxi Province by using the literature, this paper investigates 78 counties and cities of this province and finds that this tool can reduce the burden of primary and secondary school students’ homework, improve the completion of homework, reduce the willingness to participate in after-school tutoring, and improve the self-efficacy and learning investment, so as to achieve the goal of the Chinese “Double Reduction” Policy, but at the same time, the lack of convenience in using intelligent products has caused psychological anxiety for a small number of students. The psychological mechanism of reducing burden and improving quality is in line with the principle revealed by the Yerkes–Dodson law; that is, as learning anxiety decreases, the impact of psychological stress on learning efficiency increases. The appropriate psychological stress enhanced the impact of psychological pressure on learning efficacy and engagement, and improved learning efficiency. The article believes that, first, based on the principle of a three-layer structure of homework burden, the use of “Smart Homework” achieves the reduction of homework burden from three aspects: surface layer, inner layer, and core layer. Second, “Smart Homework” reduces the willingness to participate in extracurricular tutoring and, to some extent, reduces the burden of extracurricular tutoring. Third, “Smart Homework” can help students better complete homework and improve learning efficiency.

Clinical correlates of stress, immune and metabolic markers in major depression

AbstractThe hormonal mediators of the stress response, such as glucocorticoids and catecholamines, have both protective and damaging effects on the body. In the short term, they are essential for adaptation, maintenance of homeostasis, and survival; but chronic exposure to stress or abnormalities in the modulation of the stress response can become maladaptive, leading to a broad range of physical and mental problems.Allostatic load refers to the activation of physiological regulatory systems in response to stress and “the cost” of the effects of these systems on the body. Results from isolated biomarkers and allostatic load measures based on the stress response system (hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis, autonomic nervous system and immuno-metabolic biomarkers) and its relationships with clinical outcomes, such as cognition, in a clinical sample of major depression patients will be presented. The usefulness and relevance in the clinical practice of those biomarkers and the allostatic load concept will be discussed. The integration of several biomarkers translating the biological and psychological impact of stress on depression development and its clinical trajectories could contribute toward understanding how to prevent and improve outcomes in major depression.Disclosure of InterestV. Soria Grant / Research support from: Instituto de Salud Carlos III and the Bellvitge Biomedical Research Institute

The Impact of Psychological Stress and Perceived Social Support on Life Satisfaction in Parents of Children with Chronic Diseases [In Arabic

The present research study aims to examine a hypothetical model that predicts the effect of the relationship between psychological stress and perceived social support on life satisfaction among parents of children with chronic diseases, while adopting the analytical approach to study the course of relationships. The sample consisted of 305 mothers and fathers of children with chronic diseases, who completed the psychological stress questionnaire, the perceived social support scale and the life satisfaction scale.
 In general, fit indices supported the hypothesized model, The results also indicated that the high level of psychological stress among the respondents directly affects life satisfaction and is negatively associated with the dimensions of perceived social support (family, friends and other distinguished people), which in turn affect life satisfactionin positive and direct manner.

Global research trends on psychosocial rehabilitation in patients with cardiovascular diseases: A bibliometric analysis using CiteSpace

Cardiovascular diseases (CVDs) pose a serious threat to global public health due to its high prevalence and mortality. Meanwhile, psychosocial rehabilitation (PSR) has gained popularity due to its beneficial effects on the cardiovascular system. There is substantial evidence that PSR is effective in lessening cardiovascular morbidity and mortality in CVD patients. To learn more about the development of PSR, 3,759 publications about PSR and related research were retrieved from the Web of Science (WoS) Core Collection from 1989 to 2022. Then, these publications were analysed using CiteSpace 6.1.R3 (64-bit) W version software in terms of country and institution-based analysis, author co-citation analysis (ACA), keyword analysis, and document co-citation analysis (DCA). The outcomes were elaborated in four aspects. First, the number of annual publications related to PSR has consistently increased in last three decades. Second, country and institution-based analysis showed that a few developed countries such as the United States, England and Canada, and institutions such as the Harvard University, the University of California, and the University of Toronto were the most active countries and institutions in carrying out PSR-related studies. Third, author co-citation analysis (ACA) revealed that Sherry L. Grace from York University had the highest number of publications (35). Her research majorly focused on optimizing post-acute cardiovascular care and its outcomes that contribute to the field of PSR. Frasure-Smith had the highest burst count of 41.39. His research mainly emphasized on the impact of psychological stress in acute myocardial infarction which is related to CVD. Document co-citation analysis (DCA) revealed that epidemiologic evidence was the predominant cluster in the domain of PSR. Fourth, Keyword based analysis showed that keywords such as coronary heart disease, cardiovascular disease, acute myocardial infarction and major depression made outstanding contribution to the PSR field. In conclusion, this study has provided useful information for gaining knowledge about PSR such as identifying potential contributors for researchers interested in the field of PSR, and discovering research trends in PSR, which can provide guidance for more extensive studies related to PSR in the future.

A Cross-Sectional Study on the Psychological Impact of Stress, Anxiety and Depressive Symptoms in COVID-19 Patients.

BackgroundCOVID-19 has become a public health emergency caused by a negative-stranded ribonucleic acid (RNA) virus, which previously caused severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) and the Middle East respiratory syndrome (MERS). In addition, the pandemic led to an array of social, financial, psychological, and psychiatric issues.MethodsAn observational study was performed with consecutive sampling and included patients diagnosed with COVID-19 and admitted to the hospital. Subjects were evaluated using a semi-structured proforma and an online survey of the revised Impact of Event Scale (IES-R) 15 days post-discharge from the hospital.ResultsA total of 201 subjects were recruited, of which approximately 30% were female, and the rest were male. Approximately half of the subjects experienced symptoms suggestive of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), with the highest number of patients falling in the severe category. Also, females experienced more anxiety symptoms than males (p=0.002).ConclusionInfection with COVID-19 and hospitalization tended to significantly impact individuals' mental state. In addition, the majority of subjects had severe symptoms of post-COVID PTSD, warranting the need for treatment.

Impacts of psychological stress on high dose-rate radiation acute effects in a mouse experimental model

Psychological stress affects health. Radiation workers in the medical field or astronauts living in space have possible risks of exposure to radiation, and psychological stress is considered to be easily induced in them due to activities performed in small areas or stress conditions. The impact of psychological stress on the effects of radiation was evaluated in senescence-accelerated mouse prone 10 (SAMP10) mice and ddY mice using a confrontational housing model, which makes dominant and subordinate mice in a cage live together without severe quarrel. Mice of ddY and SAMP10 have been previously demonstrated to be influenced in terms of acute and late effects, respectively, under psychological stress by this model. In SAMP10 mice, irradiation with 4 Gy induced the death of irradiated mice under psychological stress. In ddY mice, irradiation with 5 Gy X-rays alone had almost no effect on the mouse survival, but irradiation in conditions of psychological stress promoted acute death of irradiated mice. In addition, hypocellular bone marrow was also observed histopathologically in irradiated ddY mice under stress. Psychological stress may promote damage caused by radiation through modulation of radio-sensitivity in bone marrow in mice. This model would be useful for evaluation of modulation of radiation-induced various effects by psychological stress.

A171 EXPLORING PATIENT PERSPECTIVES ON A 12-WEEK, ONLINE STRESS REDUCTION INTERVENTION IN INFLAMMATORY BOWEL DISEASE

BackgroundInflammatory bowel disease (IBD) which includes Crohn’s disease (CD) and ulcerative colitis (UC), is a chronic relapsing-remitting or progressive inflammatory condition. In addition to physical symptoms, individuals with IBD experience uncertainty about their future, social isolation, and increased psychological stress. Conventional medical and surgical IBD treatment does not adequately address the the impact of psychological stress. Online stress reduction interventions may therefore be useful adjuncts to standard medical therapies for IBD. The Peace Power Pack (PPP) trial was a 12-week RCT testing a stress reduction intervention with two core components: (i) a yoga, breathwork and meditation video, and (ii) a behavior-change facilitation informed by cognitive behavioral therapy.AimsThe aims of this qualitative study, which was carried out alongside the PPP trial was to: (i) explore the experience of living with IBD, (ii) understand the impacts of the PPP program, and (iii) identify potential improvements to the program.MethodsUpon completion of the 12-week RCT, all intervention participants were invited to participate in semi-structured interviews. A qualitative descriptive approach was used. Interviews were analyzed through a theoretical thematic analysis process, whereby transcripts were coded, and codes then grouped into larger categories and themes.ResultsOf the 56 participants interviewed, 52% had CD and 48% had UC. Participants ranged in age from 23 to 73 years, were predominantly female (70%) and had been diagnosed with IBD 14.3 years ago. Three main themes (Table 1) were identified: (i) IBD as a source of stress and uncertainty, (ii) understanding the positive impacts of the stress reduction program, and (iii) suggested strategies to enhance program desirability. IBD was described as causing uncertainty, significant disruptions to daily activities, and stress. The online program was associated with a perceived reduction in IBD symptom burden, an increased ability to manage daily and disease-associated stressors, and a more positive mindset. Variation in program content and fostering connections with others in the IBD community were identified as potential strategies to enhance future programming.ConclusionsThis study highlights the power of the patient voice to deepen our understanding of the impact of IBD, and the potential benefit of an online stress reduction program including suggestions for iterative refinement.Table 1. Themes identified with sample quotationsThemeSample quoteIBD as a sources of stress & uncertainty“It’s stress from the fact that no one really knows the cause. No one really knows the cure and it’s maybe going to get worse over time”.Understanding the positive impacts of the PPP programI catch myself . . . I’m much more mindful of what’s going on stress wise . . . it changed how I look at stress and how I cope with it.Enhancing program desirabilityI wanted to talk to other people in the program who had similar life situations to me. Like working full-time, having young children at home . . . to share strategies they were using to make time to do this.Funding AgenciesUniversity of Alberta Hospital Foundation, the American College of Gastroenterology and the Inflammation, Microbiome, and Alimentation: Gastrointestinal and Neuropsychiatric Effects (IMAGINE) Network CIHR grant

Psychological Impact of Coping Strategies and Nurse Performance During the Covid-19 Pandemic at Rspal Dr. Ramelan Surabaya

Background: Coronavirus disease (Covid-19) has become an epidemic that creates a psychological burden for nurses who provide nursing care in health services. The psychological condition of nurses who are not good will affect anxiety, coping strategies, and performance when carrying out nursing care. Purpose: This study aims to describe the psychological impact on coping strategies and the performance of nurses in health services. Methods: The research design used observational analytic with a cross sectional approach. The population used were nurses who worked in the COVID-19 isolation room at the Naval Central Hospital Dr. Ramelan Surabaya with 54 nurses. The sampling technique is used with total sampling, that is, the entire population is used as a sample in the study. Results: The results of the Spearman Rho correlation test have a relationship between the psychological impact of anxiety and the nurse's strategy in dealing with COVID-19 patients (ρ-value = 0.001); there is no relationship between the psychological impact of anxiety and the performance of nurses in dealing with covid 19 patients (ρ-value = 0.08); there is no relationship between the psychological impact of depression and the performance of nurses in dealing with covid 19 patients (ρ-value = 0.064). and there is a relationship between the psychological impact of stress and the performance of nurses in dealing with covid 19 patients (ρ-value = 0.0124); and there is a relationship between the psychological impact of stress and the performance of nurses in dealing with covid 19 patients (p-value = 0.0124). Conclusion: Psychological impacts do not always affect the performance of nurses, this can happen because nurses have good coping skills, plus nurses have attended seminars and training so that nurses' knowledge and skills have increased. Nurses have also been vaccinated, so nurses' anxiety and fear in treating COVID patients has decreased.

Impact of Psychological Stress during COVID 19 Pandemic on Quality of Life of Health Care Workers in Mental Health Hospital in Egypt

Impact of Psychological Stress during COVID 19 Pandemic on Quality of Life of Health Care Workers in Mental Health Hospital in Egypt

The effect of psychological stress on academic achievement among siblings of autistic children spectrum disorder

The current study aims to identify the impact of psychological stress among siblings of autistic children on their academic achievement, as well as identifying differences in the level of their academic achievement according to the variables of the normal brother: gender, age, educational level, and the variables of the autistic siblings: gender and age of autistic children in Jeddah. The quantitative approach was followed, depending on the questionnaire. The results revealed that the level of psychological stress and academic achievement were moderate. The results also showed that there were no significant differences due to the variable gender of the respondent, the gender of the autistic child, the age of the autistic children, the educational level, and the age of the sibling in relation to academic achievement. The results also showed that no relationship between psychological stress and academic achievement.
 
 Keywords: psychological stress, academic achievement, siblings, autism spectrum disorder

Resting heart rate variability in professors: Impact of psychological stress, obesity and blood pressure

Objective: University professors are prone to show physical and psychological diseases related to excessive workload. Such overwork can affect the functioning of the autonomic nervous system, leading to a decrease in heart rate variability (HRV). HRV reflects the continuous fluctuation of the R-R intervals due to sympathetic and parasympathetic actions in the heart and is associated with good physical and psychological health. We aimed to evaluate whether psychological stress and anthropometric and clinical variables influence HRV at rest in professors. Methods: University professors of both sexes (N=65; 41 men) participated. We collected Anthropometry and Clinical variables, Psychological stress, and HRV parasympathetic parameters (square root mean squares of the differences between RR intervals: RMSSD, number of successive differences between RR intervals, which are > 50 ms: NN50 and high frequency – HF). Results: Four principal components (PCs) represented 68.29% of the data total variation. Principal component 1 (PC1) was called the good cardiac regulation component. PC2 was called the component of reduced stress symptoms. PC3 was named favorable working conditions component. PC4 was denominated component of labor and physiological deregulation. Each HRV parameter was associated with each PC through the use of regression models. The RMSSD was positively associated with PC2. The NN50 was positively associated with PC2 and PC3. HF was positively associated with PC3 and PC4. Conclusions: HRV parasympathetic parameters, which represent good physical and mental health, are positively associated with the components of reduced stress symptoms, favorable working conditions, and labor and physiological deregulation.Objetivo: Professores universitários são propensos a apresentar doenças físicas e psicológicas relacionadas à carga horária excessiva. Esse excesso de trabalho pode afetar o funcionamento do sistema nervoso autônomo, levando a uma diminuição da variabilidade da frequência cardíaca (VFC). A VFC reflete a flutuação contínua dos intervalos RR devido às ações simpáticas e parassimpáticas no coração e está associada a uma boa saúde física e psicológica. Objetivamos avaliar se o estresse psicológico e as variáveis antropométricas e clínicas influenciam a VFC em repouso em professores. Métodos:Participaram professores universitários de ambos os sexos (N = 65; 41 homens). Coletamos variáveis antropométricas e clínicas, estresse psicológico e parâmetros parassimpáticos da VFC (raiz quadrada da média dos quadrados das diferenças entre os intervalos RR: RMSSD, número de diferenças sucessivas entre os intervalos RR, que são> 50 ms: NN50 e alta frequência - HF). Resultados: Quatro componentes principais (PCs) representaram 68,29% da variação total dos dados. O componente principal 1 (PC1) foi denominado componente de boa regulação cardíaca. PC2 foi chamado de componente de redução dos sintomas de estresse. O PC3 foi denominado componente de condições favoráveis de trabalho. PC4 foi denominado componente do parto e desregulamentação fisiológica. Cada parâmetro de VFC foi associado a cada PC por meio do uso de modelos de regressão. O RMSSD foi positivamente associado ao PC2. O NN50 foi associado positivamente com PC2 e PC3. HF associou-se positivamente com PC3 e PC4. Conclusões: Os parâmetros parassimpáticos da VFC, que representam boa saúde física e mental, estão positivamente associados aos componentes de redução dos sintomas de estresse, condições favoráveis de trabalho e desregulamentação fisiológica e laboral.

High Salt Intake Increases Contextual Fear Retrieval and Synaptic Inhibition of Medial Entorhinal Cortex‐Projecting Neurons of the Basolateral Amygdala

Fear-related neuropsychiatric disorders are becoming increasingly prevalent. Although the impact of psychological stress on fear disorders is well studied, less attention has been paid to the impact of physiological stressors. High salt (NaCl) intake is a common physiological stressor, well known to increase the prevalence and severity of cardiovascular disease (CVD), but effects on fear-related mental health disorders, which are often co-morbid with CVD, have only recently been investigated. Our lab reported that mice consuming excess salt exhibit anxiety-like active coping behaviors and heightened basolateral amygdala (BLA) neuronal activation following swim stress. BLA principal neurons (PN) are critical in processing fear memory and their projections to medial entorhinal cortex (BLA-mEC) are implicated specifically in contextual fear memory. Thus, we formulated and tested the hypothesis that high salt intake increases contextual fear memory retrieval linked to hyper-activation of BLA PNs following retrieval testing. Because BLA PNs are normally under strong control by local interneurons (INs), we further hypothesized that high salt intake reduces ongoing synaptic inhibition of BLA-mEC PNs. To increase salt intake, normal drinking water was replaced with a solution of 4% NaCl for 7 consecutive days. Immediately thereafter, contextual fear conditioning was performed and 24 h later mice were re-exposed to the same context for memory retrieval with fear quantified as percentage of time spent posturally immobile (i.e., freezing behavior). Ninety min after fear retrieval testing, mice underwent perfusion fixation and Fos immunostaining of BLA. In a separate treatment group, mice received rhodamine retrobead injections in the mEC to identify BLA-mEC neurons in brain slices prepared 3-5 days later. Results indicate that high salt intake (HSI) increased fear memory retrieval compared to normal salt intake (NSI) (HSI: 69 ± 5% (n=9), NSI: 44 ± 6% (n=9), unpaired t-test P=0.0038) without changing the mean intensity of Fos immunofluorescence in BLA (HSI: 220 ± 20 F/F0 (n=6), NSI: 240 ± 15 F/FBKGD (n=6), unpaired t-test P=0.4412). Compared to NSI, HSI increased the amplitude (HSI: 32 ± 0.6 pA (n=7), NSI: 22 ± 0.4 pA (n=9), unpaired t-test P<0.0001) and frequency (HSI: 5.3 ± 1.4 Hz (n=7), NSI: 2.5 ± 0.8 Hz (n=9), unpaired t-test P=0.0415) of spontaneous inhibitory postsynaptic currents recorded from BLA-mEC neurons. Thus, HSI enhances retrieval of contextual fear memory despite an apparent increase of inhibitory synaptic control of BLA-mEC PNs and lack of evidence of greater overall BLA neuronal transcriptional activation. Whether greater synaptic inhibition is maintained in vivo to buffer HSI-induced excitatory drive remains to be determined. Presently, our findings are consistent either with HSI acting downstream of BLA to enhance contextual fear memory retrieval or that Fos immunoreactivity does not accurately index strengthening of excitatory input to BLA caused by HSI. Whichever the case might be, findings warrant further investigation into the underlying mechanisms of HSI-induced enhancement of fear memory retrieval.

A systematic review of randomized controlled trials examining workplace wellness interventions.

One of the influencing factors associated with weight gain is overeating as a maladaptive coping strategy to process or avoid the emotional impact of psychological stress. Psychological stress is chronically and pervasively associated with stress stemming from the workplace environment. Workplace wellness interventions have a unique opportunity to change environmental factors impacting psychological stress, which can improve individual food choice and weight management efforts. To synthesize evidence from randomized controlled trials on workplace wellness interventions that impact employee psychological stress and food choice or weight management. A systematic review was completed according to Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) guidelines. Selected studies were limited to English-language articles exploring randomized interventions at workplaces among adult employees and included measurements of psychometric stress and food choice (qualitative or quantitative) or biometric weight management. From the search, 10 studies were included in the final review. Results were inconsistent across studies. There was no observable association between psychological stress reduction and food choice or weight management. Mid-length interventions (ranging from 6 to 9 months) had more consistent associations between intervention program implementation, reduced psychological stress, and improved food choice or weight management. The studies examining employee food choices and weight management efforts remained very heterogeneous, indicating that more research is needed in this specific area of employee wellness program planning and measurement. Consistent research methodology and assessment tools are needed to measure dietary intake.

Impact of psychological stress on the outcomes of assisted reproduction in Tunisian infertile women.

Introductionchildlessness is an emotionally difficult experience for infertile couples. Undergoing assisted reproductive treatments (ART) could generate further stress in these patients. Studies investigating the impact of anxiety on ART outcomes have shown controversial results. Moreover, there are no publications focusing on anxiety symptomsin infertile Tunisian couples.Methodswe conducted a prospective study including 79 infertile women undergoing in vitro fertilization at the Reproductive Medicine Unit of the Farhat Hached Hospital (Tunisia). Participants were asked to answer to the Beck anxiety inventory (BAI) on the day of oocyte retrieval. Accordingly, they were classified into the 3 groups: group A: very low anxiety (n= 36; BAI<21), group B: moderate anxiety (n= 24; 22≤BAI≤35) and group C: severe anxiety (n=19; BAI≥36). For each patient, two blood samples were collected to assess free cortisol level on the day of oocyte retrieval and on the day of embryo transfer.Resultsresults showed that women with primary infertility were significantly more stressed than those with secondary infertility (p= 0.011). Cortisol level was significantly higher on the day of embryo transfer than on the day of oocyte pick-up (p<0.0001). A lower implantation rate was found in severely anxious patients compared with moderately anxious women (p= 0.03) and those having low levels of anxiety (p= 0.001) and was negatively correlated to BAI score (r= -0.65; p= 0.001). Both clinical pregnancy and livebirth rates were similar among the three groups.Conclusionthe day of embryo transfer is the most stressful timepoint and psychological counseling is crucial to enhance implantation rate. Hence implantation took place, no effect of stress on pregnancy and live birth was found.