Well-founded stress measurement is necessary for the development of specific counteractions against stress-related health problems

Trier, August, 4, 2010. Mental problems have become a widespread disease and an enormous cost factor in the health care system, with stress being an essential underlying factor of many of them. However, what exactly is stress and how can we measure it? The consideration of this question is necessary for the development of counteractions.

The prevalent term “stress” holds a much more complex concept than the average (stressed) citizen might think. The stress response concerns a bodily adjustment to challenging environmental demands. The concept of stress implies three important aspects: (1) The stressor itself – for example an environmental factor as high noise, or a critical life event. (2) The subjective reaction or psychological response to the stressor – that is, certain emotions such as anxiety as well as exhaustion. (3) The biological response to the stressor – for instance the secretion of certain hormones and hence resulting in bodily changes such as a heart rate increase. Each of these three aspects can be considered and measured separately, their interplay being of particular interest. Thus, not every person shows exactly the same responses, nor does every stressor lead to the same aftermath, e.g. a certain health problem. Stress responses and their consequences rather vary between people as well as between situations.

Further, the distinction of acute and chronic stress is of special importance. We consider stress as acute, if the stressor’s duration is short and the body has the possibility to recover after the stress response and to return to its equilibrium. Chronic stress is characterized by a long duration time of one or many stressors. The body fails to recover; the biological stress systems get out of control and cannot be regulated any more. This holds risks for the mental and physical health.

Measuring the perceived psychological stress and the physiological stress response constitutes an important first step towards the development of counteractions. In the field of acute stress the so called Trier Social Stress Test (TSST) is regarded as the gold standard. The TSST comprises a standardized stress situation, which leads to a reliable increase of various psychological and biological stress parameters. The psychological stress response depicts how a person perceives the acute stress response. For this purpose questionnaires are applied. The physiological stress response can be measured on different levels; important biomarkers are the stress hormone cortisol, the heart rate, immune parameters and other parameters.
If stressors influence an organism over a longer time period, we talk about chronic stress. Also in this area procedures that measure psychological and biological changes have been established. The so called Cortisol Awakening Response (CAR) provides information about a disregulation of the biomarker Cortisol. Based on the CAR, a diagnostic tool named Neuropattern™ has been developed in Trier (Germany) and is being employed in first studies. Neuropattern™ focuses specifically on those biological systems that run out of control during chronic stress. The procedure provides several patterns of disregulation, from which a personalized intervention recommendation is derived.

Both in research and practice, a careful and thought out measurement of perceived stress and biological stress responses are indispensable. Solely in this way purposeful and suitable counteractions can be developed. An extensive overview on common measurement methods is provided in the chapter “Measuring Stress” that recently appeared in the Encyclopedia of Behavioral Neuroscience (2010, Elsevier).

As a contract research organization located in the Trier Science Park of Trier DAaCRO offers an up-to-date expertise in this area. DAaCRO’s main focus is set in the field of stress measurement. For seven years now it carries out studies on psychotropic effects of pharmaceuticals, nutraceuticals, functional food, food supplements and health care products. “We offer our expertise accompanied by the expertise of our scientific advisory board to companies in order to utilize new knowledge as soon as possible for a better human health” says DAaCRO’s CEO Juliane Hellhammer.

Background information: DAaCRO
DAaCRO is a contract research organization that performs phase I-IV clinical trials for pharmaceutical companies and clinical studies for healthcare and food supplements industries. DAaCRO was founded in 2003 by scientists of the University of Trier, Germany to routinely meet the extensive legal requirements for clinical research. An efficient and reliable administration organizes a multidisciplinary team of experts in basic and clinical research. The company is based in Trier, Germany and is conducting studies in many different locations. DAaCRO’s particular expertise lies in a sophisticated assessment of effects of psychotropic substances on anxiety, depression and stress.

Contact:
DAaCRO - Pressestelle
Wissenschaftspark Trier
Max-Planck-Str. 22
D - 54296 Trier

Tel.: + 49 (0) 651 9120 494
esperstedt@daacro.de
www.daacro.de

Contact person:
Sigrid Esperstedt

This release was published on openPR.