ABSTRACT
<p><b>OBJECTIVE</b>To observe the psychological stress status in patients with acute coronary syndrome (ACS) and stable angina pectoris (SA).</p><p><b>METHODS</b>The intensity of social psychological stress and the serum levels of IL-6, CRP and ICAM-1 were determined in patients with ACS (n = 67) and SA (n = 33).</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>(1) The percentage of patients with psychological stress was significantly higher in ACS than that in SA group (78.8% vs. 21.2%, P < 0.01). (2) The serum levels of CRP [(14.82 +/- 5.07) g/L vs. (8.78 +/- 4.34) g/L], IL-6 [(101.7 +/- 22.2) ng/L vs. (71.1 +/- 23.5) ng/L] and sICAM-1 [(1.41 +/- 0.47) mg/L vs. (0.82 +/- 0.37) mg/L] were significantly higher in psychological stress group than those in non-psychological stress group (all P < 0.05). Serum CRP [(18.91 +/- 3.12) g/L vs. (6.20 +/- 2.46) g/L], IL-6 [(114.6 +/- 15.2) ng/L vs. (56.4 +/- 15.8) ng/L] and sICAM-1 [(1.67 +/- 0.39) mg/L vs. (0.63 +/- 0.28) mg/L] levels in ACS group were significantly higher than those in SA group (all P < 0.01).</p><p><b>CONCLUSION</b>Higher psychological stress was associated with higher risk of ACS and increased serum inflammatory cytokines.</p>