Role of Meditation in Ameliorating Examination Stress Induced Changes in Cardiovascular and Autonomic Functions.
Anumeha Bhagat, Shival Srivastav, Anita S Malhotra, Ravi Rohilla, Ajeet K Sidana, K K Deepak
Annals of Neurosciences July 2023 DOI: 10.1177/09727531231169629 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Pre-post intervention study Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Sample size | 80 |
| Population | Healthy young medical students during examination stress |
| Intervention | Raj Yoga meditation (RYM) |
| Duration | One month of supervised RYM practice; assessments before training, after examinations, and after two months |
| Measures | SBP, DBP, HRV, BRS, Medical Student Stressor Questionnaire (MSSQ), SDNN, LF nu, HF nu, average RR, median RR, average rate, RMSSD, pRR, total power, LF (µs2), LF/HF ratio |
| Topics | Meditation |
| Keywords | Baroreflex sensitivity Blood pressure Examination stress Heart rate variability |
| Key points | One month of supervised Raj Yoga meditation decreased diastolic blood pressure (p = 0.01) but not systolic blood pressure, and significantly changed SDNN (p = 0.03), low-frequency nu (p = 0.003), and high-frequency nu (p = 0.04), while baroreflex sensitivity showed a non-significant trend toward increase (p = 0.44). Medical Student Stressor Questionnaire scores declined significantly for MSSQ I (p = 0.04), MSSQ II (p = 0.04), and MSSQ IV (p = 0.03). The authors conclude that short-term supervised RYM during stressful periods is protective for the cardiovascular and autonomic systems and decreases stress in medical students. |
Abstract
Examination stress is a very well-known model of psychological stress in students. It induces changes in systolic (SBP) and diastolic blood pressure (DBP), along with changes in heart rate variability (HRV) and baroreflex sensitivity (BRS), due to autonomic perturbations. To find out if Raj Yoga meditation (RYM) practice affects autonomic and cardiovascular function in healthy young subjects during periods of examination stress. Our primary objective was to evaluate the effect of one month of supervised RYM practice on ameliorating examination-induced changes in cardiovascular and autonomic function. The secondary objective was to measure the stress levels of medical students before and after RYM. Pre-training measurements of SBP, DBP, HRV, and BRS were done, and the Medical Student Stressor Questionnaire (MSSQ) was administered to 80 participants one month before examinations. They were then trained in RYM. Post-training assessment of the same parameters was done after examinations and also after two months. In our study, RYM training decreased DBP (p = 0.01) but not SBP. BRS showed a trend towards an increase after RYM practice, but it was not statistically significant (p = 0.44). The standard deviation of the NN interval (SDNN) (p = 0.03), low-frequency (LF) nu (0.003), and high-frequency (HF) nu (0.04) showed a statistically significant change. Average RR, median RR, average rate, square root of the mean squared differences of successive NN intervals (RMSSD), pRR, total power, LF (µs2), and LF/HF ratio were not statistically significantly different between the three groups. There was a statistically significant decline in MSSQ scores for MSSQ I (p = 0.04), MSSQ II (p = 0.04), and MSSQ IV (p = 0.03). Short-term practice of supervised RYM during stressful periods is protective for the cardiovascular and autonomic systems and decreases stress in medical students.
Comparable studies
Other non-randomized and open-label trials on meditation, most cited first.
| Study | Year | Design | Participants |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction in Relation to Quality of Life, Mood, Symptoms of Stress, and Immune Parameters in Breast and Prostate Cancer Outpatients Early-stage breast and prostate cancer patients | 2003 | Pre-post intervention study | n = 59 |
| Exploring self‐compassion and empathy in the context of mindfulness‐based stress reduction (MBSR) Community sample | 2010 | Pre-post intervention study | |
| Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction Lowers Psychological Distress In Medical Students Second-year medical students | 2003 | Prospective nonrandomized cohort-controlled study | n = 302 |
| Intensive meditation training, immune cell telomerase activity, and psychological mediators. Retreat participants and matched controls | 2011 | Controlled trial with wait-list control group | n = 60 |
| The Effectiveness of Mindfulness Training for Children with ADHD and Mindful Parenting for their Parents Children aged 8-12 with ADHD and their parents | 2011 | Within-group waitlist controlled trial | n = 22 |