[Stroop's color-word test as a mental stressor in the functional evaluation of recent myocardial infarction: comparison with arithmetic calculation]. / Il color-word test di Stroop come stressor mentale nella valutazione funzionale dell'infarto miocardico recente: confronto con il calcolo aritmetico.

ABSTRACT

To assess the power of Stroop's color-word test to induce cardiovascular arousal in cardiac patients, 10 postinfarct patients underwent Stroop's test, as well as the mental arithmetic test, which was assumed to be the gold standard. Both stressors induced significant increases in heart rate and blood pressure; the differences between these increases were not statistically significant. Stroop's test is a useful alternative to the mental arithmetic test in the study of cardiovascular responses to mental stress.