Perceived job stress but not individual cardiovascular reactivity to stress is related to higher blood pressure at work

Psychological stress has been reported to be related to higher blood pressu re (BP) and unfavorable cardiovascular profile. However, because of the com plexity of personal stress management, a multilevel stress measurement stra tegy is needed. The aim of this cross-sectional study was to analyze the re spective influences of the subjective perception of professional strain (hi gh demand and low latitude) and cardiovascular reactivity to a stress test (Stroop stress test) on BP. Worksite BP was measured in 303 healthy normote nsive subjects, 18 to 55 years of age, who worked in the same chemical comp any. In a subset of 70 randomly selected subjects, 24-hour ambulatory BP wa s performed to assess BP during working hours. The 20% of subjects who repo rted the highest job strain (high-strain group) or the highest BP stress re activity (high-responder group) were compared with the remaining subjects ( 80%) (non-high-strain or low-responder groups). Subjects who submitted to t he highest job strain had significantly higher ambulatory diastolic BP (4.5 rrim Hg, P=0.015) during only working hours, whereas BP was similar during the remaining hours. Worksite BP and stress cardiovascular reactivity were similar between job strain groups. BP stress reactivity did not influence worksite and ambulatory BP. Spontaneous BP variability assessed by standard deviation and spectral analysis was equivalent between complementary group s. Prevalence of microalbuminuria was significantly higher in the high-resp onder group (8.2% versus 2.5% in low responders) and only slightly higher i n the high-strain group (6.2% versus 3.2% in non-high strain). Potential co nfounding factors, such as age, gender, alcohol consumption, salt intake, b ody mass index, and occupation, which were equivalent between groups, did n ot interfere with our results. Our study quantifies high-professional strai n effects on BP levels that appear to be higher only during the working per iod and to be independent from spontaneous BP variability and stress BP rea ctivity.