The Role of Chronic Psychosocial Stress in Explaining Racial Differences in Stress Reactivity and Pain Sensitivity.

ABSTRACT:

Objective

To examine the role of psychosocial factors in mediating the relationship between African American (AA) race and both increased pain sensitivity and blunted stress reactivity.

Methods

Participants included 133 AA and non-Hispanic white (nHW) individuals (mean [SD] age, 37 [9]) matched for age, sex, and socioeconomic status. Participants underwent mental stress testing (Trier Social Stress Test) while cardiovascular, hemodynamic, and neuroendocrine reactivity were measured. Participants completed questionnaires assessing potential sources of psychosocial stress and were tested for pain responses to cold pain and the temporal summation of heat pulses. Mediation analyses were used to determine the extent to which exposure to psychosocial stress accounted for the obser

SUBMITTER: Gordon JL 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC5285323 | biostudies-literature | 2017 Feb/Mar

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature