Low vagal activity as mediating mechanism for the relationship between personality factors and gastric symptoms in functional dyspepsia.
Low vagal tone may represent a mediating mechanism for relationships between personality and symptoms of functional dyspepsia (FD) through a mechanism of antral hypomotility. Twenty-one patients with FD and seventeen healthy controls completed a series of personality tests before vagal and sympathetic activity, antral motility, and abdominal symptoms were assessed in response to a laboratory task. Functional dyspepsia patients had lower scores on vagal tone (p = .054) and motility index (p = .011) in addition to the expected higher scores on epigastric discomfort (p = .002). Psychological factors explained a substantial amount of the variance in vagal activity, antral motility, and reported symptoms. Symptoms were predicted by trait anxiety (STAI-TR), depression (BDI), and neuroticism (EPQ-N). Poor vagal tone was related to neuroticism (EPQ-N). Poor motility was best explained by task-related state dysphoria (SACL-STR).
Haug
T T
TT
Department of Psychiatry, Haukeland University Hospital, Bergen, Norway.
Svebak
S
S
Hausken
T
T
Wilhelmsen
I
I
Berstad
A
A
Ursin
H
H
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D001143:Arousal / Q000502:physiology*; D001146:Arrhythmia, Sinus / Q000503:physiopathology / Q000523:psychology; D004415:Dyspepsia / Q000503:physiopathology* / Q000523:psychology; D005260:Female; D005712:Galvanic Skin Response / Q000502:physiology; D005746:Gastric Emptying / Q000502:physiology; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010551:Personality; D010552:Personality Assessment; D011603:Psychophysiology; D013001:Somatoform Disorders / Q000503:physiopathology* / Q000523:psychology; D014630:Vagus Nerve / Q000503:physiopathology*