Effect of Stress on Autonomic and Cardiovascular Systems in Military Population: A Systematic Review.
Álvaro Bustamante-SánchezJosé Francisco Tornero-AguileraValentín E Fernández-ElíasAlberto J Hormeño-HolgadoAthanasios A DalamitrosVicente Javier Clemente-SuarezPublished in: Cardiology research and practice (2020)
Stress is regulated by the autonomous nervous system, increasing the sympathetic modulation when a threat is perceived. A multifactorial response usually leads to significant behavioural modifications and alterations on homeostasis and physical and psychological status. Moreover, stress is an emotional response that can lead to psychosocial and psychophysiological adversity. Regarding military population, military operations and combat exposure are important stressors that influence acute and chronic stress response in soldiers, affecting their performance and health. A bibliographic search was carried out between April and May 2019, focusing on recent studies (2013-2019) that analysed psychophysiological response, stress, stress regulation, heart rate, heart rate variability, and posttraumatic stress disorder in military population. Autonomic and cardiovascular chronic stress seems to be modulated by experience and previous specific training of each military unit. Physical exercise, music embedded with binaural beat technology, bidirectional sensory motor rhythm training, heart rate variability biofeedback, and transcutaneous vagal nerve stimulation are the main techniques applied to balance stress and to recover body homeostasis. Since military population are usually exposed to multiple stressors, knowing previous training and experience, together with developing techniques to balance stress, is the main practical application in this field of study to balance autonomic and cardiovascular systems.
Keyphrases
- heart rate variability
- heart rate
- posttraumatic stress disorder
- blood pressure
- stress induced
- mental health
- public health
- healthcare
- intensive care unit
- physical activity
- heat stress
- hepatitis b virus
- depressive symptoms
- risk assessment
- atrial fibrillation
- social support
- drug induced
- extracorporeal membrane oxygenation
- virtual reality
- human health