bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Effect of Noise Distraction during Mental Arithmetic on Phasic Cardiovascular Activity
Authors: Linden Wolfgang 
Published: February 2007

ABSTRACTThe present study investigated the effects of four experimental variations of mental arithmetic on subjective stress, systolic and diastolic blood pressure, and heart rate. The four conditions were: 1) mental arithmetic only, 2) mental arithmetic with steady 90dB(A) white noise distraction, 3) mental arithmetic with steady real‐life noise distraction averaging 90dB(A), and 4) mental arithmetic with varying real‐life noise distraction averaging 90dB(A). Subjects were 63 healthy young adults of both genders. The statistical analyses evaluated gender and conditions as independent variables and initial response magnitude as well as within‐task adaptation of blood pressure and heart rate. Observed differences for the various experimental conditions were remarkably few: 1) more systolic blood pressure adaptation was found during steady real‐life noise distraction than in other conditions; 2) there was a trend toward diastolic blood pressure adaptation for all conditions except the variable real‐life noise; and 3) enhanced heart rate responses were displayed during varying real‐life noise distraction relative to the other conditions. Overall, the findings are held to indicate that blood pressure and heart rate initial reactivity and adaptation are unaffected by noise distraction with the exception of an exaggerated heart rate response in conditions of high stimulus variability.
Sibling Similarities in Cardiovascular Reactivity to Stress
Authors: Ditto Blaine 
Published: February 2007

ABSTRACTTo examine the similarities of nun‐twin sibling pairs in cardiovascular reactivity to stress, in terms of both individual parameters such as heart rate and general cardiovascular reactivity, 36 young adult sibling pairs were recruited. Members of 12 same‐sex male, 12 same‐sex female, and 12 opposite‐sex pairs participated in a 66‐min experimental protocol consisting of alternating stress and relaxation periods. Pour stressors were employed: a challenging conceptual task, mental arithmetic, isometric bund‐grip, and the cold pressor test. Repeated measurements of systolic and diastolic blood pressure (SBP. DBF), heart rate (HR), ear pulse transit time (EPTT), and digital blood volume pulse (DBVP) were obtained. Pair members exhibited significant similarities in resting SBP, DBP, and HR. A number of significant similarities in reactivity to stress were observed. To examine the specificity of familial influences on different aspects of cardiovascular response to stress, a number of canonical and cross‐correlations were computed. The cardiovascular reactions of one sibling were used to predict those of his/her brother or sister. Several of the correlations attained significance. Most interestingly, familial influences on SBP, DBP, and DBVP reactivity to the cold pressor test appear to exhibit some degree of overlap, possibly reflecting more fundamental familial influences on alpha‐adrenergic reactivity. Joint familial influences on behavioral and cardiovascular reactivity to stress are discussed.
A Data‐Based Method for Bivariate Outlier Detection: Application to Automatic Blood Pressure Recording Devices
Authors: Clark L.A. , Denby L. , Pregibon D. , Harshfield G.A. , Pickering T.G. , Blank S. , Laragh J.H. 
Published: February 2007

ABSTRACTThe rapidly increasing use of automatic devices for the measurement of blood pressure has made it increasingly important to identify artifactual readings. This paper describes an objective technique for isolating a small but adjustable percentage of the readings that are likely artifacts. The validity of these readings requires the subjective judgment of the clinician. The proposed methodology substantially reduces the number of readings to be manually examined by not only taking into account the level of systolic and diastolic blood pressure per se, but also the relationship between the two and how they vary according to differential covariate information. The method can be applied to homogeneous populations, or as illustrated in this paper, to heterogeneous populations after adjustment for known or suspected sources of variability. Thus the technique is applicable to protocols which examine blood pressure, or for that matter any two (or more) related variables, during a variety of experimental procedures including psychophysiological reactivity tasks.
Evaluation of a New Ambulatory Blood Pressure Monitor (Accutracker 102): Laboratory Comparisons With Direct Arterial Pressure, Stethoscopic Auscultatory Pressure, and Readings From a Similar Monitor (Spacelabs Model 5200)
Authors: Light Kathleen C. , Obrist Paul A. , Cubeddu Luigi X. 
Published: February 2007

ABSTRACTSystolic (SBP) and diastolic (DBP) blood pressure levels generated by a new noninvasive ambulatory monitor, the Accutracker 102, were compared in the laboratory with intra‐arterial pressure levels in 12 normotensive men, and with stethoscopic auscultatory determinations in 27 normotensive and hypertensive men and women over a wide range of within‐subject pressure variations. In 11 subjects, its performance was also compared with another ambulatory monitor, the Spacelabs Model 5200. Highly positive correlations with both the intra‐arterial (medianr=+.90 for SBP, +.92 for DBP) and the stethoscopic standards (medianr=+.93 for SBP, +.88 for DBP) were obtained using Accutracker's automatic readings (digital readout), while slightly higher correlations were obtained with hand‐scoring of recorded data. The Spacelabs BP monitor also yielded readings that were highly correlated with stethoscopic readings (medianr=+.83 for SBP, +.77 for DBP), although in 3 of the 11 subjects the Accutracker correlations were substantially higher than the Spacelabs correlations. Despite their generally good tracking of changes in pressure, both ambulatory monitors yielded absolute values in many subjects that differed by 5 mmHg or more from stethoscopic levels. The Accutracker's SBP levels were consistently too high and its DBP levels were occasionally too low, while Spacelabs' SBP and DBP values were too high and too low with equal frequency. However, mean deviation scores for each patient calculated from 5 concurrent ambulatory monitor and stethoscopic readings were shown to yield relatively stable correction factors for use when comparison with clinical standards is desired.
Third Ventricle Enlargement and Reduced Electrodermal Responsiveness
Authors: Cannon Tyrone D. , Fuhrmann Michael , Mednick Sarnoff A. , Machon Ricardo A. , Parnas Josef , Schulsinger Fini 
Published: February 2007

ABSTRACTUsing a subsample of subjects from the Copenhagen schizophrenia high‐risk project, we investigated the relationship between enlargement of the third ventricle and phasic electrodermal activity, as measured by amplitude and frequency of responses to orienting, unconditioned, conditioned, and generalization stimuli. Subjects with enlarged third ventricles evidenced significant overall reductions in amplitude and frequency of response, and significantly lower response levels to orienting, conditioned, and generalization stimuli. These effects were independent of psychiatric diagnosis and enlargement of the lateral cerebral ventricles. Difficulties in interpretation posed by the index of atrophy employed and by the 18‐year time interval between the electrodermal and brain measures are discussed. The results are presented as a preliminary indication of an association between third ventricle enlargement and reduced autonomic nervous system activity.
The Effects of Cognitive and Physical Stress on Cardiovascular Reactivity Among Smokers and Oral Contraceptive Users
Authors: Emmons Karen M. , Weidner Gerdi 
Published: February 2007

ABSTRACTBlood pressure and heart rate responses to cognitive (mental arithmetic) and physical (cold pressor) stress were monitored in four groups of women: 1) smokers/non oral contraceptive (OC) users, 2) non‐smokers/OC users, 3) smokers/OC users, and 4) non‐smokers/non‐OC users (control). All subjects were reactive to both types of stress. The results suggest that oral contraceptive use among smokers may enhance systolic blood pressure reactivity to cognitive stress when compared to smokers/non‐OC users. Also, OC use among women with a parental history of heart disease was marginally associated with elevated systolic and diastolic blood pressure responses to the cold pressor test. These findings suggest that oral contraceptive use may interact with smoking and parental history of heart disease and warrant further investigation.
Effects of Autonomic Blockade on Heart Rate Responses to Reaction Time and Sustained Handgrip Tasks
Authors: Pollak Michael H. , Obrist Paul A. 
Published: February 2007

ABSTRACTThis study used both beta‐adrenergic and cholinergic pharmacological blockade to investigate differences in autonomic mediation of heart rate responses during reaction time and sustained handgrip tasks. Forty‐five healthy young men received a venous infusion of saline and then performed each task for the first time. Then, each subject received a second infusion consisting of either saline, propranolol hydrochloride, or atropine sulfate, and repeated each task. For each infusion, the 15 subjects in each group were unaware of which of the three substances they were receiving. The results indicate that heart rate increases during the reaction time task were mediated by increased beta‐adrenergic activity, whereas heart rate increases during handgrip were mediated by a combination of increased beta‐adrenergic activity and vagal withdrawal. These results support the hypothesis that neural mechanisms mediating cardiac adjustments during some types of psychological stress differ qualitatively from mechanisms mediating similar‐appearing adjustments during some types of physical exertion.
The Effects of Vigorous Exercise on Anxiety, Heart Rate, and Alpha Activity of Runners and Nonrunners
Authors: Boutcher Stephen H. , Landers Daniel M. 
Published: February 2007

ABSTRACTState anxiety, heart rate, and alpha activity of male nonrunners and runners (N=30) during a vigorous run and a quiet reading session were examined. Physical activity was performed at 80–85% age‐related maximal exercise heart rate for 20 min; the same subjects participated in a reading condition. Analysis revealed a significant decrease in post‐run state anxiety for the runners compared to the nonrunners. No reduction in state anxiety for either group was found after the reading condition. Runners also significantly reduced their heart rate after the run compared to nonrunners. A significant increase in alpha activity for both runners and nonrunners was found after the run compared to the reading condition. These results suggest that post‐exercise anxiety and heart rate responses were influenced by level of aerobic conditioning. Furthermore, dissimilar anxiety, heart rate, and alpha responses were found after the reading and exercise conditions.
Individual Differences in Heart Rate and Peripheral Vascular Responses to an Extended Aversive Task
Authors: Miller Sydney B. , Ditto Blaine 
Published: February 2007

ABSTRACTPsychophysiological research on situations requiring active coping has to this point dealt primarily with cardiac responses. Recent studies of vascular responses to such stressors have found conditions in high cardiac reactors that are possible precursors to autoregulatory vasoconstriction. The present study exposed 32 healthy male undergraduates to a one‐hour shock avoidance procedure, with avoidance made contingent on video‐game performance. Subjects also participated in a separate counterbalanced baseline session. The relationships among individual differences in heart rate, forearm blood flow, forearm vascular resistance, and digital blood volume pulse responses at different points in the stress session were examined. Decreases in forearm vascular resistance were observed only among high and medium heart rate reactors. As the session progressed, however, forearm vascular resistance responses of the medium heart rate reactors were sustained whereas those of the high heart rate reactors habituated despite the fact that heart rate and forearm blood flow responses remained elevated. The potential implications of this pattern of results to an autoregulation theory of hypertension development are discussed. Heart rate reactivity was inversely related to performance on the video‐game task but was unrelated to Type A or anxiety.
The Effect of Intermittent Noise on Cardiovascular Functioning During Vigilance Task Performance
Authors: Carter Norman L. , Beh Helen C. 
Published: February 2007

ABSTRACTThis study was designed to investigate the effect of presentations of intermittent noise differing in predictability on cardiovascular functioning during task performance. Under a quiet condition and three conditions of intermittent noise, measures of blood pressure, heart rate (interbeat interval), and heart rate variability (variance, successive difference mean square, and the 0.1 Hz component of sinus arrhythmia) were obtained while subjects were occupied with a 55‐min vigilance task. The results indicated that intermittent noise significantly increased diastolic and mean blood pressure. In addition, 0.1 Hz measures differed between the group working under quiet conditions and the groups working under noise. Although heart rate increased in all groups during the task, it increased significantly more in groups receiving unpredictable noise bursts. For the variables that were significantly affected by the noise presentations there was no evidence of response habituation over the task period. The results are discussed in relation to the effort required to maintain performance levels during noise, and attention is drawn to the implications of the present findings for cardiovascular health under conditions of chronic intermittent noise.
Is Elicitation of the Autonomic Orienting Response Associated With Allocation of Processing Resources?
Authors: Dawson Michael E. , Filion Diane L. , Schell Anne M. 
Published: February 2007

ABSTRACTTwo experiments investigated whether elicitation of the autonomic orienting response is associated with active allocation of processing resources as indexed by the slowing of reaction time to secondary task probes. In Experiment 1, 75 college student subjects performed a dual task consisting of a primary auditory orienting task and a concurrent secondary visual reaction time task. The primary orienting task included task‐relevant tones presented to one car and task‐irrelevant tones presented to the other ear. The last trial of the primary task included an unexpected novel tone presented binaurally. The secondary task consisted of a series of brief light flashes presented at critical times throughout the primary task; the reaction time of the subjects' motor responses to these flashes was measured. Consistent with the resource allocation view of orienting, the results demonstrated that resources were allocated during the primary task tones and the novel tone, and this allocation was greater during the early trials than the late trials of the primary task. However, a directional dissociation was observed in that resource allocation was greater during the task‐irrelevant tone whereas autonomic orienting responses were larger to the task‐relevant tone. Experiment 2 replicated all of these effects and demonstrated that the directional dissociation was sensitive to the predictability and ease of discrimination between the task‐relevant and task‐irrelevant tones. Taken together, these findings indicate that the relationship between resource allocation and autonomic orienting is a reliable but complex one in need of further research.
Acute Emotional and Psychophysiological Effects of Aerobic Exercise
Authors: Roth David L. 
Published: February 2007

ABSTRACTAn experiment was conducted to examine the acute emotional and psychophysiological effects of a single bout of aerobic exercise. Forty active and 40 inactive college students were randomly assigned to an aerobic exercise or a waiting‐period control condition. Self‐report measures of mood and cardiovascular response measures to challenging cognitive tasks were collected before and after the 20‐min exercise/control period to examine any exercise‐induced changes. The results indicated that mood was significantly altered by the exercise activity, with reductions in tension and anxiety specifically evident. Exercise was not found to have any effects on cardiovascular reactivity. A test of aerobic fitness confirmed fitness differences between active and inactive participants, but no mood or reactivity effects related to activity status were obtained. These results suggest that both active and inactive individuals experience acute reductions in anxiety following single bouts of exercise, even in the absence of changes in cardiovascular reactivity. Implications for the continued investigation of the acute effects of exercise are discussed.
Patterns of Autonomic Response During Laboratory Stressors
Authors: Allen Michael T. , Crowell Michael D. 
Published: February 2007

ABSTRACTThe present study was designed to include an index reflecting the influence of parasympathetic nervous system activity on the heart, respiratory sinus arrhythmia, in addition to measures reflecting primarily sympathetic nervous system activity. The inclusion of the parasympathetic index was considered important for two reasons: (a) Past studies have suggested different patterns of autonomic response to qualitatively different laboratory stressors but have had to infer parasympathetic influences more indirectly, and (b) there is evidence that borderline hypertensives may have reduced vagal tone at rest when compared to normotensives. This last point is important for the study of individual differences in cardiovascular reactivity because excessive responsiveness in young normotensives (beta‐adrenergic reactors) has been suggested as a model for studying the precursors of some types of hypertension. Fifty‐one male college students were given a reaction time task, a mental arithmetic task, a cold pressor task, and graded bicycle exercise. A variety of cardiovascular and respiratory measures were collected on each subject. Results indicated significant differences in levels of respiratory sinus arrhythmia during the three tasks and the rest period, giving additional evidence for parasympathetic differences (along with sympathetic differences) in these conditions. Additionally, high beta‐adrenergic reactors did not differ in mean level of respiratory sinus arrhythmia from low reactors either at rest or during the task periods. These results are discussed in the context of previous research.
Premenopausal and Postmenopausal Women Differ in their Cardiovascular and Neuroendocrine Responses to Behavioral Stressors
Authors: Saab Patrice G. , Matthews Karen A. , Stoney Catherine M. , McDonald Robert H. 
Published: February 2007

ABSTRACTMiddle‐aged (45–51 years) women performed four tasks while their heart rate, blood pressure, and plasma catecholamines were measured. The tasks were serial subtraction, mirror image tracing, speech, and postural tilt. The speech task was considered to be particularly relevant to women because of its emphasis on social skills. Fifteen premenopausal women reported menstruating regularly and were tested in the early follicular phase. Sixteen postmenopausal women reported not menstruating for at least 12 months and their hormonal status was verified by serum levels of follicle‐stimulating hormone. Results showed that postmenopausal women exhibited greater increases from baseline in heart rate during all tasks, relative to premenopausal women, with a particularly pronounced increase during the speech task. Postmenopausal women exhibited greater increases from baseline in systolic blood pressure and epinephrine, relative to premenopausal women, during the speech task only. Explanations for the stressor‐specific effect of menopausal status were discussed. The results suggest that reproductive hormones may interact with stressor characteristics to determine middle‐aged women's physiological responses to stress.
Effects of Conditioned Stimulus Fear‐Relevance and Preexposure on Expectancy and Electrodermal Measures of Human Pavlovian Conditioning
Authors: Booth Michael L. , Siddle David A. T. , Bond Nigel W. 
Published: February 2007

ABSTRACTThe present research investigated the effects of fear‐relevance of the conditioned stimulus (CS) and CS preexposure on human electrodermal conditioning and on a continuous measure of expectancy of the unconditioned stimulus (US). Both experiments employed 20 preexposure, 8 acquisition, and 8 extinction trials in a differential Pavlovian conditioning paradigm with shock as the US. In Experiment 1 (N = 48), electrodermal conditioning was retarded by CS preexposure, but was not influenced by fear‐relevance of the CS. Expectancy of the US was retarded by preexposure only in the fear‐relevant condition. In Experiment 2 (N = 48), the CS/US contingencies were embedded in a visual masking task. Preexposure retarded both electrodermal conditioning and US expectancy. Neither measure was influenced by fear‐relevance of the CS. However, fewer subjects in the preexposure condition learned the CS/US relationship and those who did, did so on a later trial than those in the no‐preexposure condition. Thus, the results indicated clear retardation of conditioning as a result of preexposure, but no reliable effect of fear‐relevance.
Effects of a Change in Tone Frequency on the Habituated Orienting Response of the Sleeping Rat
Authors: Johnen Marga , Schnitzler Hans‐Ulrich 
Published: February 2007

ABSTRACTEEG arousal and heart rate responses to change in tone frequency following habituation training were studied during slow wave sleep in the rat. Rats were exposed to sequences of 12 tone pulses. Habituation stimuli (trials 1–7) had a frequency of 16 kHz. The frequency of the following (test) trials was changed to either 5, 12, 14, 22, or 40 kHz. Hearing level was held constant for all frequencies. Test trials were repeated five times to study rehabituation. The results indicate that heart rate deceleration is an indicator of the orienting reflex and its magnitude is a positive function of the amount of frequency change of the stimulus. Large frequency changes in either direction relative to the habituation frequency lead to re‐evocation of the habituated EEG arousal and heart rate deceleration, with subsequent rehabituation. Small tone‐frequency changes do not result in EEG arousal or heart rate deceleration responses that differ from the responses to the habituated frequency. Heart rate acceleration shows neither short‐term habituation nor significant reaction to any of the test frequencies.
Stability of Myoelectric Slow Waves and Contractions Recorded from the Distal Colon
Authors: Enck Paul , Whitehead William E. , Shabsin Harry , Nikoomanesh Parviz , Schuster Marvin M. 
Published: February 2007

ABSTRACTThe stability of physiological activity in the distal colon was investigated by recording 5–6 hours in each of 6 healthy adults. Contractions and myoelectric slow waves were recorded from the sigmoid colon (25–30 cm from the skin surface) and rectum (10–15 cm), and pressure waves were recorded from the proximal small intestine. The activity index (sum of areas of all waves divided by recording time) varied by 200% to 800% across 4‐min samples for all motility and myoelectric slow wave recordings. Spectral analysis indicated that contractile activity waxed and waned in a cycle with a period of 40–55 min in the colon and 64–80 min in the small intestine. Myoelectric slow wave activity in the colon cycled with a period of 30–40 min. Contractile activity in the sigmoid colon was correlated with similar activity in the rectum, but myoelectric slow wave activity in the colon was not correlated with myoelectric slow waves in the rectum. The frequency composition of contractions and slow waves was unstable over time.