PROLONGED EXPOSURE TO A STRESSFUL STIMULUS (NOISE) AS A CAUSE OF RAISED BLOOD-PRESSURE IN MAN

Systolic and diastolic blood-pressure was significantly higher in 44 male industrial workers with a noise-induced auditory impairment (≥65 dB at 3000, 4000, or 6000 Hz) than in 74 males of the same age with normal hearing. Moreover, significantly more individuals with hypertension (resting recumbent blood-pressure ≥160/100 mm Hg) were found in the group with noise-induced loss of hearing. It is suggested that repeated and prolonged exposure to a stressful stimulus (industrial noise severe and prolonged enough to cause a permanent loss of hearing at the relevant frequencies) may be a contributing factor to the rise in blood-pressure through a mechanism involving structural adaptation of blood-vessels in response to repeated peaks of raised blood-pressure.