Job Strain and Stroke Risk: Time for a Career Change?

The association between psychological stress and cardiovascular disease has been an area of interest for many years. Some studies have shown a link between occupational stress and the development of hypertension and cardiac disease. Because similar studies of stroke risk have been conflicting, these authors undertook a meta-analysis of available studies.

The authors found six studies that classified jobs according to demands and the degree of employee control over work conditions and decision making. They identified four categories: low strain (high control, low demand), passive (low control, low demand), active (high control, high demand), and high strain (low control, high demand). The six studies included 138,782 participants, and the mea…