Auditory startle response during exposure to war stress

This report describes the immediate effect of war stress on physiological measures of the auditory startle responses (ASRs). Ten healthy Israeli subjects were examined 4 months before the Gulf war, during a missile alert on the first day of the war, and 8 months after the war. The magnitude and rate of habituation of orbicularis oculi electromyogram (EMG), heart rate (HR), and skin conductance (SC) responses to 15 consecutive presentations of 95-dB, 0-rise time, 1,000-Hz pure tones were recorded on each occasion, along with self-reports of anxiety. The group's anxiety scores were significantly higher during the war. ASRs, in contrast, remained stable across exposure conditions. However, a decrease in SC habituation was observed in few individuals during the war, and may illustrate a distinctive vulnerability to stress. The results are discussed in light of recent findings of abnormal startle response in posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD).