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. 2009 Aug 11;32(9):E1–E6. doi: 10.1002/clc.20515

Usefulness of Peripheral Arterial Tonometry in the Detection of Mental Stress‐Induced Myocardial Ischemia

Mustafa Hassan 1,2,✉, Kaki M York 2, Haihong Li 4, Qin Li 4, Dorian G Lucey 1,2, Roger B Fillingim 3, David S Sheps 1,2
PMCID: PMC6653144  PMID: 19672865

Abstract

Background

Mental stress‐induced myocardial ischemia (MSIMI) identifies a subset of coronary arterial disease (CAD) patients at increased risk for adverse cardiovascular events. Peripheral arterial vasoconstriction has been consistently reported as an underlying mechanism for ischemia development in this setting and as such affords a unique opportunity for the noninvasive detection of this phenomenon.

Hypothesis

We studied the usefulness of a peripheral arterial tonometry (PAT) technique in the detection of MSIMI. We sought to identify response patterns that would predict the development of MSIMI.

Methods

Participants were 211 patients with documented CAD. Mental stress testing was performed using a public speaking task. Rest‐stress myocardial perfusion imaging was the gold standard for ischemia detection. PAT responses were assessed during the 2 phases of the stressful task (stress anticipation and the task performance) and were calculated as a ratio of stress to the resting pulse wave amplitude.

Results

Vascular response during the stress anticipation period (speech preparation) was more pronounced than during the actual speaking task (the mean preparation index was 0.64 ± 0.53; the mean speech index was 0.72 ± 0.60; P < 0.001). PAT response during speech preparation had modest accuracy for predicting MSIMI (area under the curve [AUC] was 0.63; 95% confidence interval [CI]: 0.53–0.74, P = 0.015). A PAT index ≤ 0.52 was identified as the best cut off value for detecting MSIMI with a sensitivity of 76% and a specificity of 56%.

Conclusion

We identified a pattern of peripheral arterial response to mental stress that has a relatively modest accuracy in predicting MSIMI. Further research is needed to validate the findings of this study. Copyright © 2009 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Full Text

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