Posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is a pervasive and debilitating mental disorder in the U.S. population; 1 in 9 women will meet criteria for the diagnosis during their lives. PTSD, the sentinel stress-related mental disorder, has been declared 'a life sentence' based on the belief that the disorder leads to a host of adverse physical health problems. The association between PTSD and coronary heart disease (CHD) has received particular attention, with observational studies suggesting PTSD contributes to early development of CHD, and also that mitigating CHD risk in this population might reduce overall burden of CHD. Despite consistent findings from these studies, whether PTSD causes CHD has not been established and PTSD is not ranked in the American Heart Association (AHA) 2010 impact goals as a risk factor that requires attention. As a result, neither systematic surveillance nor treatment is provided persons with PTSD to reduce potential risk of developing CHD. Informed by these concerns, we propose 3 strategies to address if PTSD is causally related to CHD, using state-of-the-science approaches for inferring causality in observational data. First, we will apply innovative analytic designs not previously been applied in this research area, including consideration of effects when PTSD remits. Second, we will examine if PTSD influences both CHD onset and severity; to date, effects of PTSD on myocardial infarction (MI) severity has only been examined cross-sectionally. Third, evidence that PTSD affects CHD-related behavioral and biological pathways would offer further support for causation but a recent review noted mechanistic evidence on the progression of adverse cardiac outcomes in PTSD is lacking. PTSD is linked with CHD risk related behavior and biomarkers. Because cross-sectional studies cannot test if such behaviors and biomarkers are vulnerabilities for or consequences of PTSD, longitudinal studies are needed. We propose the following Specific Aims: (1) To determine if PTSD influences risk of CHD onset and MI severity with conventional and marginal structural models; (2) To examine whether PTSD changes health behaviors; (3) To identify if PTSD influences biological pathways associated with increased CHD risk. We will examine if new onset of PTSD among CHD-free women, produces changes in novel and conventional biomarkers associated with CHD risk. We will also explore using Mendelian Randomization (MR) to test whether the relation between PTSD and CHD, health behaviors, and CHD risk markers is explained by shared genetic risk or reverse causality. Taken together, the proposed research moves forward not only our understanding of the relation between PTSD and CHD but also the pathophysiology of PTSD in relation to health more broadly and has direct implications for population health.

Public Health Relevance

This purpose of this research is to better understand whether posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) causes cardiovascular disease (CVD) and to identify underlying disease mechanisms. If PTSD truly contributes to CVD etiology, then new avenues for reducing the burden of CVD must be considered and the effectiveness of various prevention or intervention strategies compared. For example, effective treatment of PTSD may reduce risk of CVD. Even if PTSD is resistant to treatment, persons with PTSD may yet benefit from greater surveillance of CVD risk factors and early interventions (e.g. statins) to prevent the development of CVD.

Agency
National Institute of Health (NIH)
Institute
National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH)
Type
Research Project (R01)
Project #
7R01MH101269-02
Application #
8857555
Study Section
Behavioral Genetics and Epidemiology Study Section (BGES)
Program Officer
Tuma, Farris K
Project Start
2014-06-02
Project End
2017-05-31
Budget Start
2015-06-16
Budget End
2016-05-31
Support Year
2
Fiscal Year
2015
Total Cost
$709,846
Indirect Cost
$239,763
Name
Harvard University
Department
Public Health & Prev Medicine
Type
Schools of Public Health
DUNS #
149617367
City
Boston
State
MA
Country
United States
Zip Code
02115
Sumner, Jennifer A; Chen, Qixuan; Roberts, Andrea L et al. (2018) Posttraumatic stress disorder onset and inflammatory and endothelial function biomarkers in women. Brain Behav Immun 69:203-209
Sumner, Jennifer A; Hagan, Kaitlin; Grodstein, Fran et al. (2017) Posttraumatic stress disorder symptoms and cognitive function in a large cohort of middle-aged women. Depress Anxiety 34:356-366
Gilsanz, P; Winning, A; Koenen, K C et al. (2017) Post-traumatic stress disorder symptom duration and remission in relation to cardiovascular disease risk among a large cohort of women. Psychol Med 47:1370-1378
Roberts, Andrea L; Koenen, Karestan C; Chen, Qixuan et al. (2017) Posttraumatic stress disorder and accelerated aging: PTSD and leukocyte telomere length in a sample of civilian women. Depress Anxiety 34:391-400
Winning, Ashley; Gilsanz, Paola; Koenen, Karestan C et al. (2017) Post-traumatic Stress Disorder and 20-Year Physical Activity Trends Among Women. Am J Prev Med 52:753-760
Basu, Archana; McLaughlin, Katie A; Misra, Supriya et al. (2017) Childhood Maltreatment and Health Impact: The Examples of Cardiovascular Disease and Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus in Adults. Clin Psychol (New York) 24:125-139
Koenen, K C; Sumner, J A; Gilsanz, P et al. (2017) Post-traumatic stress disorder and cardiometabolic disease: improving causal inference to inform practice. Psychol Med 47:209-225
Sumner, Jennifer A; Chen, Qixuan; Roberts, Andrea L et al. (2017) Cross-Sectional and Longitudinal Associations of Chronic Posttraumatic Stress Disorder With Inflammatory and Endothelial Function Markers in Women. Biol Psychiatry 82:875-884
Atwoli, Lukoye; Platt, Jonathan M; Basu, Archana et al. (2016) Associations between lifetime potentially traumatic events and chronic physical conditions in the South African Stress and Health Survey: a cross-sectional study. BMC Psychiatry 16:214
Sumner, Jennifer A; Kubzansky, Laura D; Elkind, Mitchell S V et al. (2016) Response to Letter Regarding Article, ""Trauma Exposure and Posttraumatic Stress Disorder Symptoms Predict Onset of Cardiovascular Events in Women"". Circulation 133:e401-2

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