title: Posttraumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) Patients Exhibit a Blunted Parasympathetic Response to an Emotional Stressor.
abstract: Diminished parasympathetic reactivity is a physiological feature of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD). The objective of this study was to compare female PTSD patients with non-traumatized healthy women with respect to autonomic cardiovascular regulation during exposure to two stressors. Hospitalized PTSD patients (n = 52) and controls (n = 37) completed standardized laboratory-based stress testing including a mental arithmetic test and a standardized audiotape recording of a crying infant. Controls and PTSD patients both showed a significantly increased heart rate and reduced pre-ejection period from baseline rest to the arithmetic stressor. However, as judged from nonsignificant changes in baroreflex sensitivity, parasympathetic activation caused by the crying infant stressor was blunted in PTSD patients as compared to healthy individuals. Under the crying infant condition, a vagal dominance was observed only in controls, and not in PTSD patients. Our data demonstrate that, in PTSD patients, diminished parasympathetic reactivity is not restricted to trauma-related events but can also be observed in response to a social stimulus such as listening to a crying infant. This finding suggests that the altered vagal reactivity in PTSD patients reflects the physiological consequences of a generally disturbed autonomous response to emotionally relevant stressors.
authors: Department of Psychosomatic Medicine and Psychotherapy, German Centre for Cardiovascular Research (DZHK), University of Göttingen Medical Centre, von-Siebold-Str. 5, 37075, Göttingen, Germany.
authors: Thomas
authors: T
authors: Meyer
authors: Department of Psychosomatic Medicine and Psychotherapy, German Centre for Cardiovascular Research (DZHK), University of Göttingen Medical Centre, von-Siebold-Str. 5, 37075, Göttingen, Germany.
authors: Juliane
authors: J
authors: Albrecht
authors: Department of Psychosomatic Medicine and Psychotherapy, German Centre for Cardiovascular Research (DZHK), University of Göttingen Medical Centre, von-Siebold-Str. 5, 37075, Göttingen, Germany.
authors: Gesine
authors: G
authors: Bornschein
authors: Asklepios Psychiatric Hospital, Göttingen, Germany.
authors: Ulrich
authors: U
authors: Sachsse
authors: Department of Psychosomatic Medicine and Psychotherapy, German Centre for Cardiovascular Research (DZHK), University of Göttingen Medical Centre, von-Siebold-Str. 5, 37075, Göttingen, Germany. cherrma@gwdg.de.
authors: Christoph
authors: C
authors: Herrmann-Lingen
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D001341:Autonomic Nervous System / Q000503:physiopathology; D002318:Cardiovascular Diseases / Q000188:drug therapy; D004562:Electrocardiography; D005260:Female; D006339:Heart Rate / Q000502:physiology*; D006801:Humans; D013313:Stress Disorders, Post-Traumatic / Q000503:physiopathology* / Q000523:psychology; D013315:Stress, Psychological / Q000523:psychology*
keywords: Baroreflex sensitivity; Parasympathetic reactivity; Posttraumatic stress disorder; Stress test