Dataset Information

Effects of stress on pain in females using a mobile health app in the Russia-Ukraine conflict.

ABSTRACT: The chronic and acute effects of stress can have divergent effects on health; long-term effects are associated with detrimental physical and mental health sequelae, while acute effects may be advantageous in the short-term. Stress-induced analgesia, the attenuation of pain perception due to stress, is a well-known phenomenon that has yet to be systematically investigated under ecological conditions. Using Flo, a women's health and wellbeing app and menstrual cycle tracker, with a world-wide monthly active usership of more than 57 million, women in Ukraine were monitored for their reporting of stress, pain and affective symptoms before, and immediately after, the onset of the Russian-Ukrainian conflict. To avoid potential selection (attrition) or collider bias, we rely on a sample of 87,315 users who were actively logging multiple symptoms before and after the start of the war. We found an inverse relationship between stress and pain, whereby higher reports of stress predicted lower rates of pain. Stress did not influence any other physiological symptoms with a similar magnitude, nor did any other symptom have a similar effect on pain. This relationship generally decreased in magnitude in countries neighbouring and surrounding Ukraine, with Ukraine serving as the epicentre. These findings help characterise the relationship between stress and health in a real-world setting.

SUBMITTER: Kazlou A

PROVIDER: S-EPMC10956037 | biostudies-literature | 2024 Jan

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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Effects of stress on pain in females using a mobile health app in the Russia-Ukraine conflict.

Kazlou Aliaksandr A Bornukova Kateryna K Wickham Aidan A Slaykovskiy Vladimir V Peven Kimberly K Klepchukova Anna A Ponzo Sonia S Garfinkel Sarah S

Npj mental health research 20240110 1

The chronic and acute effects of stress can have divergent effects on health; long-term effects are associated with detrimental physical and mental health sequelae, while acute effects may be advantageous in the short-term. Stress-induced analgesia, the attenuation of pain perception due to stress, is a well-known phenomenon that has yet to be systematically investigated under ecological conditions. Using Flo, a women's health and wellbeing app and menstrual cycle tracker, with a world-wide mont ...[more]

PMID: 38609485

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Project description:ImportanceQuantifying the association between the ongoing Russia-Ukraine war and Ukrainians' mental health is crucial for guiding reconstruction and rebuilding efforts in the postwar period.ObjectiveTo examine the association between war exposure and civilians' mental health in both the short and medium term and the potential channels through which these associations occur.Design, setting, and participantsThis cohort study used data from 7 nationally representative surveys conducted by the Kyiv International Institute of Sociology between December 4, 2015, and July 18, 2022. Six surveys were conducted before the war and one during the ongoing conflict in July 2022. Each survey included approximately 2000 respondents aged 18 to 95 years in 110 localities.ExposureThe magnitude of war damage exposure was represented by an indicator variable set to 1 if an oblast (province) experienced severe war damage and 0 if the damage was moderate at the time of the survey. The classification of severe or moderate damage was based on the economic losses incurred.Main outcomes and measuresThe main outcomes were respondents' self-reported thoughts of suicide and feelings of helplessness, both represented as dummy variables.ResultsThe sample included 14 140 respondents, with 3933 (27.8%) exposed to severe war damage and 10 207 (72.2%) to moderate war damage. These included 8174 female respondents (57.8%), with an overall mean (SD) age of 48.9 (16.8) years. The differences in the likelihood of reporting suicidal thoughts and feelings of helplessness between areas with severe vs moderate war damage increased by 2.2 percentage points (β estimate, 0.022 [SE, 0.006]; 95% CI, 0.009-0.036) and 4.9 percentage points (β estimate, 0.049 [SE, 0.019]; 95% CI, 0.009-0.088), respectively. Subsample analyses revealed that male respondents were more vulnerable to suicidal thoughts (β estimate, 0.030 [SE, 0.013]; 95% CI, 0.004-0.056), while female respondents were more at risk of feelings of helplessness (β estimate, 0.063 [SE, 0.024]; 95% CI, 0.013-0.113).Conclusions and relevanceIn this survey study of war exposure, bombing was associated with increased mental health concerns among civilians, including a higher likelihood of suicidal thoughts and feelings of helplessness, which may hinder postwar recovery. These findings suggest that policymakers should prioritize creating job opportunities and ensuring a safe living environment to support citizens' recovery in the aftermath of conflict.

Dataset Information

Effects of stress on pain in females using a mobile health app in the Russia-Ukraine conflict.

Publications

Effects of stress on pain in females using a mobile health app in the Russia-Ukraine conflict.

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