Abstract

RUVALCABA PALACIOS, Gerardo. Autonomous Nervous Activity on Patients with Chronic Syndromes during a Psychophysiological Profile Recording. Acta de investigación psicol [online]. 2021, vol.11, n.2, pp.70-82.  Epub Jan 14, 2022. ISSN 2007-4719.  https://doi.org/10.22201/fpsi.20074719e.2021.2.383.

Presence of chronic diseases is associated to an imbalance in autonomic activity characterized by a predominance of sympathetic arousal. In turn, this arousal is related with comorbidities and symptoms worsening. The aim of this investigation is to know if this imbalance exists in chronic patients of Irapuato, Guanajuato. Through an accidental sample, it was included seven patients diagnosed whit chronic disease for more than a year. Using a psychophysiological profile, sympathetic activity was recording by Galvanic Skin Conductance (GSC) response, and parasympathetic activity was measured using both: Cardiac Frequency (CF) and cardiac bands recordings. Analyses of variance shows increases of GSC at the end of psychophysiological profile ((= 0.05, p= 0.018) and that there are no changes in CF ((= 0.05, p= 0.180) or in cardiac frequency bands ((= 0.05, p= 0.102). Appling a Student’s t to see differences in registers of cardiac bands at the beginning and at the end of profile conditions, there is neither statistics differences between registers (all comparisons was made with (= 0.05). Summarizing, GSC shows increases between conditions while parasympathetic activity remains stable. Autonomic imbalance underlies chronic diseases. To avoid symptoms’ worsening and physical and psychiatric comorbidities this imbalance should be corrected as a normal component of conventional medical treatment.

Keywords : Chronic diseases; Chronic pain; Autonomic activity; Psychophysiological profile; Emotional state.