The variance of forearm blood flow as an indicator of emotional stress.

Forearm blood flow was measured four times per minute by venous occlusion plethysmography during rest and during a brief emotionally stressful mental task. During emotional stress not only was the mean forearm blood flow increased, but the single blood flow values fluctuated more than at rest. The greater fluctuation, expressed statistically as the variance, was an indicator of emotional stress, at least as sensitive as the mean increase in the blood flow.

The effect of alinidine (St 567) on emotionally induced tachycardia in man.

Experiments were performed in a randomized double-blind cross-over study in 6 healthy volunteers to answer the question if alinidine, a new analogue of clonidine with a bradycardic effect directly on the sinus node, would have an effect on an emotionally-induced tachycardia. Alinidine 40 mg orally significantly (1%) reduced the tachycardia and the concomitant rise in diastolic blood pressure during the stress of performing a mental task. Forearm blood flow and the efficiency (total score in the mental task) remained unchanged by alinidine.

Personality dependent effects of the ACTH 4--10 fragment on test performances and on concomitant autonomic reactions.

The effect of the ACTH-fragment 4--10 (30 mg SC) on a mental performance test and on some concomitant cardiovascular changes was investigated in comparison with a placebo in a double blind cross-over study. The subjects were either mainly extraverted or mainly introverted according to Eysenck's 'Maudsley Personality Inventory'. Under the influence of the heptapeptide extraverted subjects achieved a higher total score in the mental task performance with a smaller increase of forearm blood flow and of heart rate than under the influence of the placebo.