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Background Exaggerated cardiovascular reactivity to mental stress is hypothesized to increase atherosclerotic risk. We examined this hypothesis using cross-sectional data from the Kuopio Ischemic Heart Disease study, a population-based epidemiological sample.

Methods and Results 901 Eastern Finnish men from four age cohorts (age, 42 to 60 years) were administered a standardized testing battery to assess cardiovascular reactivity to mental stress. Ultrasound measures of intima-medial thickness (IMT) and plaque height from the common carotid arteries were used as noninvasive markers of atherosclerosis. Diastolic blood pressure (DBP) responses to mental stress were significantly associated with mean IMT (b=.021, P=.006), maximum IMT (b=.026, P=.013), and mean plaque height (b=.017, P=.041). Significant associations were also shown between stress-related systolic blood pressure (SBP …