Mental Stress and the Induction of Silent Myocardial Ischemia in Patients with Coronary Artery Disease

Abstract

To assess the causal relation between acute mental stress and myocardial ischemia, we evaluated cardiac function in selected patients during a series of mental tasks (arithmetic, the Stroop color–word task, simulated public speaking, and reading) and compared the responses with those induced by exercise. Thirty-nine patients with coronary artery disease and 12 controls were studied by radionuclide ventriculography.