A sigh following sustained attention and mental stress: Effects on respiratory variability

doi:10.1016/j.physbeh.2012.05.013

Physiology & Behavior

Volume 107, Issue 1, 20 August 2012, Pages 1-6

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.physbeh.2012.05.013 Get rights and content

Abstract

Normal breathing consists of considerable correlated variability (parameters of subsequent breaths are correlated) and some random variability. Emotional and attentive states alter normal breathing variability, which can be restored by a sigh. The present study aimed to investigate the effects of mental arithmetic and sustained attention on respiratory variability. In addition, the effect of a spontaneous sigh following both conditions was examined, compared to an instructed sigh and a control maneuver. Mental arithmetic and sustained attention were characterized by decreased correlated and total breathing variability, respectively. A spontaneous sigh restored correlated variability. An instructed sigh restored correlated variability following mental arithmetic, and increased total variability following sustained attention. These results suggest that a spontaneous sigh and an instructed sigh, when physiologically appropriate, restore respiratory variability influenced by stress or attention.

Highlights

► Mental arithmetic stress reduces correlated breathing variability. ► Sustained attention reduces total breathing variability. ► Spontaneous sighs reset correlated breathing variability. ► Instructed sighs reset breathing variability when physiologically appropriate.

Section snippets

Participants

Forty-seven volunteers participated in the study (23 men, age range 18–30, mean age 22). All participants reported to be in good health, not to suffer from any organic disease or mental disorder, nor to take any medication for these. The experiment was approved by the Ethics Committees of the Department of Psychology and of the Faculty of Medical Sciences of the University of Leuven, Belgium.

Apparatus and measures

Respiration was measured continuously by means of respiratory inductive plethysmography (RIP), using the

Subjective measures

Task difficulty, task effort, stress level and attention resources were compared between the sustained attention tasks and the mental arithmetic tasks by a repeated measures ANOVA with “task” as within subject variable. Attention, boredom, tension and relaxation scores were analyzed in a repeated measures ANOVA with “phase” as within subject variable to compare these ratings between the sustained attention task, the mental arithmetic task and the recovery periods.

Respiratory variability during sustained attention and mental stress

Mean(Vt), Mean(RR), Mean(MV),

Subjective measures

Compared to the attention task, the mental arithmetic task was rated more difficult (F(1,46) = 166.83, p < .0001) and stressful (F(1,46) = 88.61, p < .0001), requiring more effort (F(1,46) = 205.40, p < .0001) and attention resources (F(1,46) = 108.34, p < .0001). Boredom (F(2,92) = 6.95, p < .01), tension (F(2,92) = 32.28, p < .0001), relaxation (F(2,92) = 19.22, p < .0001) and attention (F(2,92) = 76.28, p < .0001) differed significantly among phases. Participants felt less bored (both p < .01), more tense (p < .001), less

Discussion

The aim of the present study was to replicate the effects of sustained attention and mental stress on respiratory variability and to investigate the influence of spontaneous and instructed sighing on respiratory variability following each of these psychological states.

The current study showed that mental stress and sustained attention were successfully induced and replicated the finding that sustained attention was characterized by decreased total variation in breathing frequency (when sighs

Acknowledgments

Elke Vlemincx is a postdoctoral fellow of the Research Foundation—Flanders (FWO).

References (52)

J.F. Thayer et al.
A model of neurovisceral integration in emotion regulation and dysregulation
J Affect Disord
(2000)
G.C. Donaldson
The chaotic behavior of resting human respiration
Respir Physiol
(1992)
M. Wysocki et al.
Chaotic dynamics of resting ventilatory flow in humans assessed through noise titration
Respir Physiol Neurobiol
(2006)
F.A. Boiten
The effects of emotional behaviour on components of the respiratory cycle
Biol Psychol
(1998)
J.L. Abelson et al.
Persistent respiratory irregularity in patients with panic disorder
Biol Psychiatry
(2001)
F.H. Wilhelm et al.
Characteristics of sighing in panic disorder
Biol Psychiatry
(2001)
F.H. Wilhelm et al.
Physiologic instability in panic disorder and generalized anxiety disorder
Biol Psychiatry
(2001)
I. Van Diest et al.
Anxiety and respiratory variability
Physiol Behav
(2006)
E. Vlemincx et al.
Respiratory variability preceding and following sighs: a resetter hypothesis
Biol Psychol
(2010)
F.J. McClernon et al.
The effects of controlled deep breathing on smoking withdrawal symptoms in dependent smokers
Addict Behav
(2004)

F.J. Keefe et al.

Development of an observation method for assessing pain behavior in chronic low back pain patients

Behav Ther

(1982)

F.J. Keefe et al.

An objective approach to quantifying pain behavior and gait patterns in low back pain patients

Pain

(1985)

F.J. Keefe et al.

Direct observation of pain behavior in low back pain patients during physical examination

Pain

(1984)

M.J. Tobin et al.

Breathing patterns. 2. Diseased subjects

Chest

(1983)

E. Vlemincx et al.

Take a deep breath: the relief effect of spontaneous and instructed sighs

Physiol Behav

(2010)

G. Willemsen et al.

Secretory immunoglobulin A and cardiovascular activity during mental arithmetic: effects of task difficulty and task order

Biol Psychol

(2000)

F.A. Boiten et al.

Emotions and respiratory patterns: review and critical analysis

Int J Psychophysiol

(1994)

M.C. Pfaltz et al.

Physical activity and respiratory behavior in daily life of patients with panic disorder and healthy controls

Int J Psychophysiol

(2010)

G.G. Berntson et al.

From homeostasis to allodynamic regulation

E.N. Bruce et al.

Mechanisms and analysis of ventilatory stability

R.L. Hughson et al.

Is the pattern of breathing at rest chaotic? A test of Lyapunov exponent

Adv Exp Med Biol

(1995)

M. Small et al.

Is breathing in infants chaotic? Dimension estimates for respiratory patterns during quiet sleep

J Appl Physiol

(1999)

M.J. Tobin et al.

Interrelationship of breath components in neighboring breaths of normal eupneic subjects

Am J Respir Crit Care Med

(1995)

I. Stevenson et al.

Variations in respiration and in respiratory symptoms during changes in emotion

Psychosom Med

(1952)

J.M. Martinez et al.

Respiratory variability in panic disorder

Depress Anxiety

(2001)

V.K. Yeragani et al.

Nonlinear measures of respiration: respiratory irregularity and increased chaos of respiration in patients with panic disorder

Neuropsychobiology

(2002)

Cited by (44)

The psychophysiology of the sigh: II: The sigh from the psychological perspective
2022, Biological Psychology
A sigh is a distinct respiratory behavior with specific psychophysiological roles. In two accompanying reviews we will discuss the physiological and psychological functions of the sigh. The present review will focus on the psychological functions of the sigh. We discuss the regulatory effects of a sigh, and argue how these effects may become maladaptive when sighs occur excessively. The adaptive role of a sigh is discussed in the context of regulation of psychophysiological states. We propose that sighs facilitate transitions from one psychophysiological state to the next, and this way contribute to psychophysiological flexibility, via a hypothesized resetting mechanism. We discuss how a sigh resets respiration, by controlling mechanical and metabolic properties of respiration associated with respiratory symptoms. Next, we elaborate on a sigh resetting emotional states by facilitating emotional transitions. We attempt to explain the adaptive and maladaptive functions of a sigh in the framework of stochastic resonance, in which we propose occasional, spontaneous sighs to be noise contributing to psychophysiological regulation, while excessive sighs result in psychophysiological dysregulation. In this context, we discuss how sighs can contribute to therapeutic interventions, either by increasing sighs to improve regulation in case of a lack of sighing, or by decreasing sighs to restore regulation in case of excessive sighing. Finally, a research agenda on the psychology of sighs is presented.
Extending affective capabilities for medical assistive robots
2022, Cognitive Systems Research
Citation Excerpt :
The mood can also be estimated with a multi-sensor analysis. Among the parameters of interest to be monitored, there are the Hearth rate variability (HRV) (Kleiger, Stein, & Bigger Jr, 2005), the respiratory variable (Vlemincx, Diest, & Bergh, 2012), the power ECG (Dressler, Schneider, Stockmanns, & Kochs, 2004; Erla, Faes, Tranquillini, Orrico, & Nollo, 2011), and the electromyography (Wijsman, Grundlehner, Penders, & Hermens, 2013). Considering that the measurement system should avoid being invasive, we have selected a set of parameters that can be measured with sensors that can be embedded in a gadget like a smart bracelet: the peak distance in earth activity (RR distance), the blood volume pulse (BLV), the skin galvanic response and temperature.
In this work, we discuss methodologies and implementation choices to enable a humanoid robot to estimate patients’ mood and emotions during postoperative home rehabilitation. The approach is modular and it has been implemented into a SoftBank Pepper robotic architecture; however, the approach is general and it can be easily adapted to other robotic platforms. A sample of an interactive session for the detection of the patient’s affective state is also reported.
The sigh and related behaviors
2022, Handbook of Clinical Neurology
Breathing is a critical, complex, and highly integrated behavior. Normal rhythmic breathing, also referred to as eupnea, is interspersed with different breathing related behaviors. Sighing is one of such behaviors, essential for maintaining effective gas exchange by preventing the gradual collapse of alveoli in the lungs, known as atelectasis. Critical for the generation of both sighing and eupneic breathing is a region of the medulla known as the preBötzinger Complex (preBötC). Efforts are underway to identify the cellular pathways that link sighing as well as sneezing, yawning, and hiccupping with other brain regions to better understand how they are integrated and regulated in the context of other behaviors including chemosensation, olfaction, and cognition. Unraveling these interactions may provide important insights into the diverse roles of these behaviors in the initiation of arousal, stimulation of vigilance, and the relay of certain behavioral states. This chapter focuses primarily on the function of the sigh, how it is locally generated within the preBötC, and what the functional implications are for a potential link between sighing and cognitive regulation. Furthermore, we discuss recent insights gained into the pathways and mechanisms that control yawning, sneezing, and hiccupping.
Sigh in Patients With Acute Hypoxemic Respiratory Failure and ARDS: The PROTECTION Pilot Randomized Clinical Trial
2021, Chest
Sigh is a cyclic brief recruitment maneuver: previous physiologic studies showed that its use could be an interesting addition to pressure support ventilation to improve lung elastance, decrease regional heterogeneity, and increase release of surfactant.
Is the clinical application of sigh during pressure support ventilation (PSV) feasible?
We conducted a multicenter noninferiority randomized clinical trial on adult intubated patients with acute hypoxemic respiratory failure or ARDS undergoing PSV. Patients were randomized to the no-sigh group and treated by PSV alone, or to the sigh group, treated by PSV plus sigh (increase in airway pressure to 30 cm H₂O for 3 s once per minute) until day 28 or death or successful spontaneous breathing trial. The primary end point of the study was feasibility, assessed as noninferiority (5% tolerance) in the proportion of patients failing assisted ventilation. Secondary outcomes included safety, physiologic parameters in the first week from randomization, 28-day mortality, and ventilator-free days.
Two-hundred and fifty-eight patients (31% women; median age, 65 [54-75] years) were enrolled. In the sigh group, 23% of patients failed to remain on assisted ventilation vs 30% in the no-sigh group (absolute difference, –7%; 95% CI, –18% to 4%; P = .015 for noninferiority). Adverse events occurred in 12% vs 13% in the sigh vs no-sigh group (P = .852). Oxygenation was improved whereas tidal volume, respiratory rate, and corrected minute ventilation were lower over the first 7 days from randomization in the sigh vs no-sigh group. There was no significant difference in terms of mortality (16% vs 21%; P = .337) and ventilator-free days (22 [7-26] vs 22 [3-25] days; P = .300) for the sigh vs no-sigh group.
Among hypoxemic intubated ICU patients, application of sigh was feasible and without increased risk.
ClinicalTrials.gov; No.: NCT03201263; URL: www.clinicaltrials.gov
Peripheral-to-central immune communication at the area postrema glial-barrier following bleomycin-induced sterile lung injury in adult rats
2020, Brain, Behavior, and Immunity
Citation Excerpt :
Moreover, serum immune factors upregulated in response to lung injury may be involved, given their ability to disrupt central cardiorespiratory circuits that include the nTS (Sekiyama et al., 1995; Rummel et al., 2006; Laaris and Weinreich, 2007; Marty and El Hachmane, 2008; Ruchaya et al., 2012; Waki et al., 2013; Koch et al., 2015; Vance et al., 2015; Forsberg et al., 2016, 2017). Consequently, ventilatory behaviors such as re-setting sighs that typically act to restore normal ventilatory patterning may be less effective during SLI (Khoo, 2000; Nakamura et al., 2003; Baldwin et al., 2004; Yamauchi et al., 2008; Nguyen et al., 2012; Vlemincx et al., 2012, 2013; Ramirez, 2014). Thus, we hypothesized that SLI would decrease the occurrence rate and effectiveness of resetting sighs and that central application of indomethacin (Ind), a COX-1/2 inhibitor, would reverse this effect.
The pathways for peripheral-to-central immune communication (P → C I-comm) following sterile lung injury (SLI) are unknown. SLI evokes systemic and central inflammation, which alters central respiratory control and viscerosensory transmission in the nucleus tractus solitarii (nTS). These functional changes coincide with increased interleukin-1 beta (IL-1β) in the area postrema, a sensory circumventricular organ that connects P → C I-comm to brainstem circuits that control homeostasis. We hypothesize that IL-1β and its downstream transcriptional target, cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2), mediate P → C I-comm in the nTS. In a rodent model of SLI induced by intratracheal bleomycin (Bleo), the sigh frequency and duration of post-sigh apnea increased in Bleo- compared to saline- treated rats one week after injury. This SLI-dependent change in respiratory control occurred concurrently with augmented IL-1β and COX-2 immunoreactivity (IR) in the funiculus separans (FS), a barrier between the AP and the brainstem. At this barrier, increases in IL-1β and COX-2 IR were confined to processes that stained for glial fibrillary acidic protein (GFAP) and that projected basolaterally to the nTS. Further, FS radial-glia did not express TNF-α or IL-6 following SLI. To test our hypothesis, we blocked central COX-1/2 activity by intracerebroventricular (ICV) infusion of Indomethacin (Ind). Continuous ICV Ind treatment prevented Bleo-dependent increases in GFAP + and IL-1β + IR, and restored characteristics of sighs that reset the rhythm. These data indicate that changes in sighs following SLI depend partially on activation of a central COX-dependent P → C I-comm via radial-glia of the FS.
Sighs can become learned behaviors via operant learning
2020, Biological Psychology
Sighs have important physiological and psychological regulatory functions. These rewarding effects of a sigh potentially reinforce sighing in situations that require physiological and/or psychological regulation. The present study aimed to investigate whether sighs can become learned behaviors via operant learning. In two studies, we manipulated the effect of spontaneous sighs in response to dyspnea relief, by either punishing a sigh by the onset of dyspnea, or not punishing a sigh by continued dyspnea relief. Results show that sigh rates in response to cues predicting the punishment of sighs are 1.20–1.28 times lower than sigh rates in response to cues predicting no punishment of sighs. These findings suggest that sighs can become learned behaviors via operant learning, contributing to both maladaptive sighing, potentially leading to respiratory dysregulation and respiratory complaints, and to adaptive sighing. Furthermore, these findings suggest new clinical practices to increase and decrease sigh rates during breathing training.

View all citing articles on Scopus

View full text

A sigh following sustained attention and mental stress: Effects on respiratory variability

Abstract

Highlights

Section snippets

Participants

Apparatus and measures

Subjective measures

Respiratory variability during sustained attention and mental stress

Subjective measures

Discussion

Acknowledgments

J Affect Disord

Respir Physiol

Respir Physiol Neurobiol

Biol Psychol

Biol Psychiatry

Biol Psychiatry

Biol Psychiatry

Physiol Behav

Biol Psychol

Addict Behav

Behav Ther

Pain

Pain

Chest

Physiol Behav

Biol Psychol

Int J Psychophysiol

Int J Psychophysiol

From homeostasis to allodynamic regulation

Mechanisms and analysis of ventilatory stability

Is the pattern of breathing at rest chaotic? A test of Lyapunov exponent

Adv Exp Med Biol

Is breathing in infants chaotic? Dimension estimates for respiratory patterns during quiet sleep

J Appl Physiol

Interrelationship of breath components in neighboring breaths of normal eupneic subjects

Am J Respir Crit Care Med

Variations in respiration and in respiratory symptoms during changes in emotion

Psychosom Med

Respiratory variability in panic disorder

Depress Anxiety

Nonlinear measures of respiration: respiratory irregularity and increased chaos of respiration in patients with panic disorder

Neuropsychobiology