PTSD Linked to Endothelial Dysfunction

Posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is associated with impaired coronary distensibility and an increased risk for major adverse cardiac events (MACE), a new study shows.

Researchers report that PTSD was independently associated with impaired coronary distensibility, as reflected in the coronary distensibility index (CDI), as well as atherosclerosis and that it predicted MACE independent of age, sex, or other conventional coronary risk factors. Impaired coronary distensibility was also independently associated with the severity of PTSD symptoms.

"These results clearly point to the important role of impaired CDI as a first step in the continuum of the actual manifestations of coronary atherosclerosis on PTSD and its related poor cardiovascular outcome," Naser Ahmadi, MD, PhD, concluded. "This highlights incremental value of CDI in the identification and management of individuals with PTSD."

"Our conclusion was basically that there's a significant linkage between these two that can be used as a prognostication tool, coronary distensibility, to screen patients who are at risk for future problems," Dr Ahmadi told Medscape Medical News. It also supports a case for monitoring, he said, "because it's related to the severity of symptoms, and that's the direction that we're heading next."

Dr Ahmadi presented the results here at the American Psychiatric Association (APA) 2015 Annual Meeting.

What is post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD)?

Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) can develop following a traumatic event that threatens your safety or makes you feel helpless.

Most people associate PTSD with battle-scarred soldiers - and military combat is the most common cause in men - but any overwhelming life experience can trigger PTSD, especially if the event feels unpredictable and uncontrollable.

Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) can affect those who personally experience the catastrophe, those who witness it, and those who pick up the pieces afterwards, including emergency workers and law enforcement officers. It can even occur in the friends or family members of those who went through the actual trauma.

PTSD develops differently from person to person. While the symptoms of PTSD most commonly develop in the hours or days following the traumatic event, it can sometimes take weeks, months, or even years before they appear.

Endothelial Dysfunction

Previous studies have linked PTSD to cardiovascular disease, including myocardial infarction, but "a conclusive link between PTSD and atherosclerosis has not been made," he said.

A recent article, for example, showed that PTSD was linked to increasing levels of coronary artery calcium. In comparison with those participants who did have have PTSD, the presence of PTSD was associated with increased risk for death at the same levels of coronary artery calcium.