Abstract
This study examined the role of endogenous opioids in the relation between hostility and cardiovascular stress responsiveness. Forty-six mencompleted the Cook-Medley Hostility Scale, and experienced a laboratory pain stressor once under opioid blockade and once under placebo. Hostility scores were significantly related to the magnitude of change in cardiovascular reactivity/recovery resulting from opioid blockade. Low scorers on the Cynicism subscalc displayed increases in heart rate (HR) reactivity under blockade relative to placebo, with reactivity decreases noted in high scorers. Low Hostile Affect scores were similarly associated with impaired diastolic blood pressure recovery under opioid blockade. HR recovery results were somewhat different, with high scorers on Aggressive Responding and the total Cook-Medley displaying improved HR recovery under opioid blockade, with no change noted in low scorers. These data provide preliminary support for the hypothesis that low hostile individuals rely on endogenous opioids for buffering cardiovascular stress responsiveness. but high hostiles do not.
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Preparation of this article was supported by an American Psychological Association Dissertation Research Award. NIMH Research Training Fellowship MH15730. a University of Kentucky Research Foundation Grant, and NIH Research Awards HL32738 and HL35195
We thank Gary Lamb and Christopher Booze for their assistance in this project, as well as Thomas Garrity and Richard Milich for their help in critiquing this project in its early stages.
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Bruehl, S., McCubbin, J.A., Carlson, C.R. et al. The psychobiology of hostility: Possible endogenous opioid mechanisms. Int. J. Behav. Med. 3, 163–176 (1996). https://doi.org/10.1207/s15327558ijbm0302_5
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1207/s15327558ijbm0302_5