Post-traumatic stress disorder may raise heart disease death risk

Washington – People suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) face a greater risk of cardiovascular disease and death, a new study has suggested.

Francesco Bartoli and coauthors from University of Milano-Bicocca, Italy, University College London, UK, and San Gerardo Hospital, Monza, Italy, conducted a systematic review and meta-analysis and, based on their findings, propose that the increased risk of metabolic syndrome may result from neurological and hormonal responses to chronic stress.

Their study is entitled ‘Metabolic Syndrome in People Suffering from Posttraumatic Stress Disorder: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.’

In an accompanying Editorial, ‘Posttraumatic Stress Disorder and Metabolic Syndrome: More Questions than Answers,’ authors Dawn Schwenke, PhD, VA Health Care System and Arizona State University, Phoenix, and David Siegel, MD, Northern California Health Care System (Mather) and University of California, Davis, suggest that more research is needed to determine whether the relationship between PTSD and metabolic syndrome is independent of other factors such as socioeconomic status, diet, physical activity, smoking, alcohol consumption, and insomnia.

The study has been published in journal Metabolic Syndrome and Related Disorders.