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Neural and Psychological Mechanisms
Studies suggest that between 20 and 35% of asthma exacerbations occur during periods of stress. Forsythe and colleagues examined the effect of short-term (3 days) or long-term (7 days) stress on airway inflammation and airway hyperresponsiveness to methacholine in a murine model. When allergen challenge was performed after short-term stress, the number of inflammatory cells in bronchoalveolar lavage fluid was decreased compared with unstressed animals, but levels of IL-6, IL-9, and IL-13 were increased. The decrease in inflammatory cell numbers was prevented by pretreatment with a corticosteroid receptor antagonist. In animals subjected to 7 days of stress, there was an increase in inflammatory cell numbers, which was independent of the glucocorticoid response, but no change in cytokine levels. Airway hyperresponsiveness did not change in either group of stressed animals. The authors concluded that long-term stress may engage different mechanisms than short-term stress, and can exacerbate the chronic inflammatory responses of the airways.
1 Citation displayed.
Opposing Effects of Short- and Long-term Stress on Airway Inflammation
- Paul Forsythe, Cory Ebeling, John R. Gordon, A. Dean Befus, and Harissios Vliagoftis
Am. J. Respir. Crit. Care Med. 169: 220 -226. First published online as doi:10.1164/rccm.200307-979OC
[Abstract]
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