Chronic Use of Antihypertensive Medications and Peak Exercise Blood Pressure in Adult Men and Women from the BALL ST Cohort.

PURPOSE: To determine if individuals chronically (>1 yr) prescribed antihypertensive medications have a normal BP response to peak exercise compared with unmedicated individuals. METHODS: Participants included 2555 adults from the Ball State Adult Fitness Longitudinal Lifestyle STudy cohort who performed a peak treadmill exercise test. Participants were divided into groups by sex and antihypertensive medication status. Individuals prescribed antihypertensive medications for >1 yr were included. Exaggerated and blunted SBP within each group was categorized using the Fitness Registry and the Importance of Exercise: A National Database (FRIEND) and absolute criteria as noted by the American Heart Association. RESULTS: The unmedicated group had a greater prevalence ( P < 0.05) of blunted SBP responses, whereas the medicated group had a higher prevalence ( P < 0.05) of exaggerated SBP responses using both the FRIEND and absolute criteria. Peak SBP was higher ( P < 0.01) in medicated compared with unmedicated participants in the overall cohort when controlling for age and sex, but not after controlling for resting SBP ( P = 0.613), risk factors ( P = 0.104), or cardiorespiratory fitness ( P = 0.191). When men and women were assessed independently, peak SBP remained higher in the medicated women after controlling for age and resting SBP ( P = 0.039), but not for men ( P = 0.311). Individuals on beta-blockers had a higher peak SBP even after controlling for age, sex, risk factors, and cardiorespiratory fitness ( P = 0.022). CONCLUSIONS: Individuals on antihypertensive medications have a higher peak SBP response to exercise. Given the prognostic value of exaggerated peak SBP, control of exercise BP should be considered in routine BP assessment and in the treatment of hypertension.

Evaluating Workforce Mental Health and Well-Being: A Review of Assessments.

OBJECTIVE: Given the importance of mental health and well-being assessments to employers' efforts to optimize employee health and well-being, this paper reviews mental health assessments that have utility in the workplace. DATA SOURCE: A review of publicly available mental health and well-being assessments was conducted with a primary focus on burnout, general mental health and well-being, loneliness, psychological safety, resilience, and stress. INCLUSION CRITERIA: Assessments had to be validated for adult populations; available in English as a stand-alone tool; have utility in an employer setting; and not have a primary purpose of diagnosing a mental health condition. DATA EXTRACTION: All assessments were reviewed by a minimum of two expert reviewers to document number of questions, subscales, fee structure, international use, translations available, scoring/reporting, respondent (ie, employee or organization), and the target of the assessment (ie, mental health domain and organizational or individual level assessments. DATA SYNTHESIS & RESULTS: Sixty-six assessments across the six focus areas met inclusion criteria, enabling employers to select assessments that meet their self-identified measurement needs. CONCLUSION: This review provides employers with resources that can help them understand their workforce's mental health and well-being status across multiple domains, which can serve as a needs assessment, facilitate strategic planning of mental health and well-being initiatives, and optimize evaluation efforts.