Changes in the Perfusion Index After Psycho-emotional Stress

Abstract

Currently, the measurement of stress is an important, relevant and unsolved problem. Despite the fact that it has been shown that various physiological indicators can be used to assess stress, a universal classical method for assessing the cognitive status of subjects in the analysis of non-invasively recorded signals has not yet been developed. The aim of the work was to study the possibility of using the perfusion index to assess the psychophysiological state of a person during the solution of cognitive tasks. It was conducted a special experiment, including the stages of classical stress tests: the Stroop Color World Test and the Mental Arithmetic Test. The experimental sample included 10 healthy volunteers aged 21±3 years without signs of mental disorders. It was recorded the signal of the perfusion index in calm and stress states. Further, according to the obtained psychophysiological indicators for each volunteer, the average value of the perfusion index at each stage of the experiment was calculated. It was found that the values of the perfusion index decreased during the solution of cognitive tasks. Thus, the difference in the values of the perfusion index at different stages of the experiment demonstrated the possibility of using this signal to detect stress.