Association of Cardiovascular Autonomic Function with Psychological Distress in Young Adults

Background: Psychological distress has been increasingly recognized as a contributing factor to cardiovascular dysfunction. Alterations in cardiac autonomic regulation may represent early physiological changes linking psychological stress to future cardiovascular risk. Objective: To evaluate the association between psychological distress and cardiovascular autonomic function in young adults using resting cardiovascular parameters and short-term heart rate variability (HRV) analysis. Methods: This cross-sectional study included 100 young adults aged 18–25 years, comprising 50 healthy controls and 50 psychologically distressed participants categorized using a validated self-reported stress scale. Resting heart rate (HR), systolic blood pressure (SBP), and diastolic blood pressure (DBP) were recorded under standardized laboratory conditions. Short-term HRV was assessed from 360-second R–R interval recordings using Kubios software. Time-domain (Mean RR, SDNN, RMSSD, NN50, pNN50) and frequency-domain (Total Power, LF, HF, LF/HF ratio) parameters were analyzed. Pearson correlation was used to assess associations between stress scores and HRV indices. Results: Psychologically distressed participants demonstrated significantly higher resting HR, SBP, and DBP compared to controls (p < 0.01). Time-domain HRV parameters were significantly reduced in the distressed group, including Mean RR, SDNN, RMSSD, NN50, and pNN50 (p < 0.001). Frequency-domain analysis revealed significantly lower Total Power and HF power, with significantly higher LF power and LF/HF ratio (p < 0.001), indicating sympathetic predominance and reduced parasympathetic modulation. Stress scores showed strong negative correlations with parasympathetic indices (r ranging from –0.55 to –0.65) and positive correlations with LF power and LF/HF ratio (r = 0.48 and 0.66, respectively; p < 0.001). Conclusion: Psychological distress in young adults is significantly associated with cardiovascular autonomic imbalance characterized by reduced vagal activity and increased sympathetic dominance. These findings suggest that psychological distress may contribute to early autonomic dysregulation and potential long-term cardiovascular risk.