There is evidence to suggest that dysregulation of the HPA axis might be one of the
biological pathways linking psychosocial stress with cardiovascular disease (CVD). This
PhD consisted of three studies that aimed to assess the role of HPA axis dysregulation in
CVD, and to examine potential biological mechanisms that might be involved in stress-
related HPA axis dysregulation. Study 1 assessed the utility of pre-surgical diurnal cortisol
rhythm in predicting adverse outcomes in advanced heart disease using data from an …

Purpose of review This manuscript reviews the epidemiological data linking psychosocial
stress to cardiovascular disease (CVD), describes recent advances in understanding the
biological pathway between them, discusses potential therapies against stress-related CVD,
and identifies future research directions. Recent findings Metabolic activity of the amygdala
(a neural center that is critically involved in the response to stress) can be measured on 18 F-
fluorodeoxyglucose positron emission tomography/computed tomography (18 F-FDG …