Sex differences in the association between PTSD symptoms with cardiac autonomic function and subclinical atherosclerotic risk
- Resource Type
- Authors
- Alaina C. Glasgow; Michael E. Holmstrup; Kevin S. Heffernan; Brock T. Jensen
- Source
- Clinical Physiology and Functional Imaging. 40:390-398
- Subject
- Adult
Male
medicine.medical_specialty
Adolescent
Physiology
Comorbidity
Disease
030204 cardiovascular system & hematology
Severity of Illness Index
Stress Disorders, Post-Traumatic
Young Adult
03 medical and health sciences
Sex Factors
0302 clinical medicine
Risk Factors
Physiology (medical)
Internal medicine
Humans
Medicine
Heart rate variability
Young adult
Pulse wave velocity
Depression (differential diagnoses)
Subclinical infection
Balance (ability)
business.industry
Heart
030229 sport sciences
General Medicine
Middle Aged
Pennsylvania
Center for Epidemiologic Studies Depression Scale
Atherosclerosis
Cardiovascular Diseases
Cardiology
Female
business
- Language
- ISSN
- 1475-097X
1475-0961
BACKGROUND Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is a public health concern that may elevate the risk for cardiovascular disease (CVD). There are established sex differences in both PTSD risk and CVD risk. PURPOSE To examine sex-specific associations between subclinical PTSD symptom severity and subclinical CVD risk in young men and women. METHODS A total of 61 young adults (women: n = 29, mean age: 26 ± 7 years) completed the post-traumatic stress disorder civilian checklist (PCL) and the Center for Epidemiologic Studies Depression Scale (CES-D). Aortic stiffness was measured as carotid-femoral pulse wave velocity (cfPWV). Peripheral vasomotor function was measured as flow-mediated slowing (FMS) of carotid-radial PWV following 5-min forearm occlusion. Heart rate variability was used to assess sympathovagal balance as LF/HF ratio. RESULTS PCL score was positively correlated with CES-D score (r = 0.79, p