Exam stress and salivary immunological function

Rongqing LI; Shi LIN; Shifang ZHAO; Bin XU

ABSTRACT

BACKGROUND:

It has been verified in relevant clinical and epidemiological researches in recent years that a part of stomatopathy is associated to psychological stress factors.

OBJECTIVE:

To analyze the relationship between the changes in salivary secretory IgA and cortisol and psychological stress states.

DESIGN:

cross-sectional investigation was designed.

SETTING:

Department of Stomatology, Zhejiang University.

PARTICIPANTS:

The investigated participants were 60 students in the 2nd grade of Fuzhou №.2 Senior School selected from May to November 2003. Fifty-seven of them accomplished the investigation, of male; aged varied from 17 to 19 years, of healthy, no stomatopathy and family history of disorders in immune system and without indulgence in smoke and alcohol. All of them had participated in the 3-day terminal exam.

METHODS:

Before the exam, evaluation with symptom checklist (there are 90 questions, including about 10 factors, such as somatization, compulsive state, sensitive interpersonal relationships, melancholy, anxiety, hostility, fear, paranoid state, psychotic state and others. The total average score results by divided total score with 90. ) was applied. Fifty-seven students that had accomplished the investigation were divided in low-symptom group (the total score of symptom checklist ＜ 2.0) and high-symptom group (the total score ≥ 2.0). 5 weeks before the exam, the students were called together to fill up investigation form of general situation. Four weeks before the exam and at 7 30 am on the day of exam, the first and second saliva specimens were collected respectively to determine salivary secretory IgA and cortisol before and after exam stress. The students were called together again 3 days after exam to fill up questionnaire on psychological health to evaluate their psychological health state.stress.

RESULTS:

Intention management analysis was adopted, in which 57 stulist with Chinese norm after exam, the scores of 4 factors, named compulsive state, anxiety, hostility and paranoid state, were higher than Chinese norm [(1.98±0.72, 1.69±0.61) scores; (1.79±0.31, 1.42±0.43) scores; (1.77±0.68,1.50±0.57)scores; (2.00±0.71, 1.52±0.60)scores, P ＜ 0.01] and there was parison of salivary secretory IgA content after stress that before exam in low symptom group was remarkably higher than that in high symptom group [(236.6±82.29),(194.55±66.29) mg/L, P ＜ 0.05], that after exam in low symptom group was higher than that in high symptom group [(182.21±55.92,tration after stress that after exam in low symptom group was remarkably higher than that in high symptom group [(5.96±2.46, 3.68±2.26) μg/L, P secretory IgA and cortisol in two groups the decrease rate of secretory IgA (0.012±0.197) and increase rate of cortisol (0.199±0.654) were relevant to compulsive state and paranoid state.

CONCLUSION:

In evaluation with symptom checklist after exam, the scores of anxiety, compulsive state, hostility and paranoid state were higher than Chinese norm, indicating that exam stress induces increased anxiety level and variation of psychological behavior of students. The difference presented in decrease rate of salivary secretory IgA before and after exam stress between high and low symptom groups, explaining that the students with more psychological symptoms are weak to endure exam stress.