Abstract
Sleep is a Possible Moderator ofthe Relationship between PTSD Symptom Severity and Endothelial Function in Trauma-exposed Women
Physiology (Bethesda, Md.), Vol.40(S1)
05/2025
DOI: 10.1152/physiol.2025.40.S1.0580
Abstract
Abstract only Introduction: Posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is associated with increased cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk. Sleep disturbances, a known risk factor for CVD, are also a hallmark of PTSD symptoms. Therefore, in a group of premenopausal trauma-exposed women, we aimed to investigate the role of sleep in the relationship between PTSD symptom severity and endothelial function, a determinant of cardiovascular health. We hypothesized that sleep might influence that relationship. Methods: We recruited 44 trauma-exposed women between the ages of 18 to 40 years and conducted a study over two laboratory visits. During visit 1, we collected baseline hemodynamics and assessed PTSD symptom severity using the PTSD checklist for DSM-5 (PCL5), and participants were given an Actigraphy watch to wear for the next 7 days to track their sleep-wake cycle and sleep efficiency. During visit 2, we measured endothelial function via the gold standard technique of flow-mediated dilation (FMD). All recorded vascular variables during FMD were analyzed using specialized semiautomated edge-detection software (Cardiovascular Suite, Quipu srl., Pisa, Italy). Further, FMD was adjusted for shear rate (FMDC) to account for variability in shear stress. For data analysis, we separated our participants into two groups based on median sleep efficiency (%): good sleepers (>83, n=17) and poor sleepers (≤83, n=27). We subsequently subcategorized each “sleepers” group using the median of PCL5 scores (a.u.): low PCL5 (≤36) and high PCL5 (>36). Statistical Analysis: We performed statistical analysis using SPSS version 28.0. First, we ran Pearson’s correlations to probe for the association between PCL5 and FMD within each “sleepers” group. Next, we ran an independent sample t-test to compare mean FMD and mean FMDC between high PCL5 and low PCL5 subgroups. Results: At baseline, both groups were comparable in age, BMI, and resting hemodynamics (p>0.05), except for diastolic blood pressure (p=0.02). As expected, poor sleepers had a lower sleep efficiency compared to good sleepers (78.05 ± 6.75% vs 86.46 ± 1.96%, p<0.001). Next, we found a negative correlation between PCL5 and FMDC in good sleepers (r= -0.36, p=0.08) but not in poor sleepers (r=0.08, p=0.71). Likewise, in good sleepers only, we found lower FMDC in the high PCL5 compared to the low PCL5 subgroup (3.9 ± 8.5% vs 18.1 ± 10.6%, p= 0.012). Conclusion: These preliminary results suggest that sleep might increase CVD risk in premenopausal trauma-exposed women by moderating the relationship between PTSD symptom severity and endothelial function. NIH K01 K01HL161027, NIH R03 R03HL174817, UMN CTSI (UL1TR002494) This abstract was presented at the American Physiology Summit 2025 and is only available in HTML format. There is no downloadable file or PDF version. The Physiology editorial board was not involved in the peer review process.
Details
- Title: Subtitle
- Sleep is a Possible Moderator ofthe Relationship between PTSD Symptom Severity and Endothelial Function in Trauma-exposed Women
- Creators
- Chowdhury Ibtida Tahmin - University of Minnesota SystemChasity Corbin - University of Minnesota SystemChowdhury T Tahsin - University of Minnesota SystemNathaniel D.M. Jenkins - University of IowaIda T Fonkoue - University of Minnesota System
- Resource Type
- Abstract
- Publication Details
- Physiology (Bethesda, Md.), Vol.40(S1)
- DOI
- 10.1152/physiol.2025.40.S1.0580
- ISSN
- 1548-9213
- eISSN
- 1548-9221
- Publisher
- AMER PHYSIOLOGICAL SOC; Rockville
- Grant note
- NIH: K01 K01HL161027, R03 R03HL174817, UL1TR002494
NIH K01 K01HL161027, NIH R03 R03HL174817, UMN CTSI (UL1TR002494)
- Language
- English
- Date published
- 05/2025
- Academic Unit
- Center for Social Science Innovation; Injury Prevention Research Center; Health, Sport, and Human Physiology
- Record Identifier
- 9984843241002771
Metrics
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