EFFECT OF ACUTE PHYSICAL STRESS ON SERUM TROPONIN-I, INFLAMMATORY CYTOKINES, AND CARDIOVASCULAR PARAMETERS IN HEALTHY ADULTS

Abstract

Background:
Acute physical stress triggers physiological and biochemical alterations, especially in the cardiovascular functioning and inflammation. Knowledge of these variations in healthy people is critical to distinguish between physiological and pathological increases in biomarkers like Troponin-I.

Place and Duration of Study:

Departments of Cardiology and Clinical Pathology, Hayatabad Medical Complex, Peshawar, from 10 June 2023 to 10 June 2024.

Methodology:
This prospective interventional study included 90 healthy adults aged 20–45 years selected through purposive sampling. A standard treadmill exercise test was performed with the Bruce protocol on the participants. Measurement of serum Troponin-I and inflammatory cytokines (IL-6, TNF-alpha, IL-1b) in blood samples were taken at baseline and one-hour post-exercise. Cardiovascular parameters, such as heart rate and blood pressure were taken at baseline, immediately post-exercise, and one-hour post-exercise. The statistical tests employed to analyse the data were paired sample t-tests with p less than 0.05 as the statistical significance threshold.

Results:

The average age of the participants was 32.7 years ± 7.5 years, 62.2% of which consisted of males. Serum Troponin-I levels increased significantly from 0.004 ± 0.001 ng/mL to 0.018 ± 0.005 ng/mL (p < 0.001). There were also significant increases in the levels of IL-6, TNF-alpha and IL-1 beta (p < 0.001). There was an increase in heart rate (74.6 ± 6.9 to 142.3 ± 12.5 bpm) and systolic blood pressure (118.7 ± 9.3 to 156.4 ± 10.2 mmHg) immediately after exercise and partial recovery in one hour.

Conclusion:

Physiological adaptation to acute physical stress leads to substantial yet temporary rises in cardiovascular parameters, serum Troponin-I, and inflammatory cytokines in healthy adults.