Blunted cardiovascular reactivity to psychological stress predicted adverse cardiovascular health and behavioural dysregulation, with predictive thresholds ranging from -3.00 to 12.59 bpm for HR.
Systematic Review (n=23)
Does blunted cardiovascular reactivity to psychological stress predict adverse health, behavioural, or psychological outcomes?
Blunted cardiovascular reactivity to psychological stress is a prospective predictor of adverse cardiovascular and behavioural outcomes, with specific heart rate and blood pressure thresholds identified for potential risk stratification.
Novel research demonstrates that lower or 'blunted' cardiovascular reactions to stress are associated with a range of adverse outcomes. The aim of the current review was (1) to examine the prospective outcomes predicted by blunted cardiovascular reactivity and (2) to identify a range of blunted cardiovascular reaction levels that predict these outcomes. Electronic databases were systematically searched (Medline, PsycArticles, PsycInfo, CINAHL, PubMed, Web of Science). Studies were included if they examined the prospective influence of blunted cardiovascular reactivity to psychological stress (SBP, DBP or HR) on a negative health, behavioural or psychological outcome. A total of 23 studies were included in the review. Blunted reactivity predicted (1) adverse cardiovascular health, primarily in cardiac samples (e.g., myocardial infarction, carotid atherosclerosis) and (2) outcomes associated with motivational and behavioural dysregulation in healthy samples (e.g., obesity, smoking addiction, depression). The cardiovascular reactivity threshold levels that were predictive of adverse health outcomes ranged between -3.00-12.59 bpm (14.41% to 136.59% lower than the sample mean) and -2.4-5.00 mmhg (65.99% to 133.80% lower than sample mean), for HR and DBP respectively. We posit that blunted reactions lower than, or equal to, the ranges reported here may be utilised by clinicians and researchers to identify individuals who are at increased risk of adverse cardiovascular health outcomes, as well as outcomes associated with motivational and behavioural dysregulation.
O’Riordan et al. (Thu,) conducted a systematic review in Adverse cardiovascular health and behavioural dysregulation (n=23). Blunted cardiovascular reactivity to psychological stress vs. Normal or higher cardiovascular reactivity was evaluated on Adverse cardiovascular health and outcomes associated with motivational and behavioural dysregulation. Blunted cardiovascular reactivity to psychological stress predicted adverse cardiovascular health and behavioural dysregulation, with predictive thresholds ranging from -3.00 to 12.59 bpm for HR.
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