Abstract
Mental stress ischemia (MSI) is a recently recognized phenomenon defined by the occurrence of myocardial ischemia during the experience of mentally and/or emotionally stressful circumstances. A substantial research effort has been directed at improving our understanding of this phenomenon, and determining whether it has prognostic significance beyond that associated with the underlying, chronic coronary artery disease (CAD). This effort has also been directed toward determining whether it is possible to specifically treat this phenomenon, and whether treatment improves prognosis. In this chapter, I will first review the literature that describes this phenomenon, relying on both naturalistic and laboratory-based studies. I will then describe the research conducted on the pathophysiology that might underlie MSI, and follow this by a review of the literature concerning prognostic significance and treatment. I will end with a discussion of future directions for research. Rather than provide a comprehensive review of the literature, this chapter will be selective in the literature discussed, the general aim being to inform the reader about MSI.
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Burg, M.M. (2006). Mental Stress Ischemia: Characteristics, Pathophysiology, Prognosis and Treatment. In: Clinical Psychology and Heart Disease. Springer, Milano. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-88-470-0378-1_5
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-88-470-0378-1_5
Publisher Name: Springer, Milano
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