Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder a Risk Factor for Metabolic Syndrome And Diabetes

Dr. Pia S. Heppner stated that,  "Patients with PTSD, whether due to pathophysiological or behavioral processes, have a higher risk (of metabolic syndrome), and primary and secondary measures should be taken to minimize their risk."
Dr. Heppner from the University of California, San Diego in La Jolla and colleagues examined physical measures and laboratory values in a sample of 253 veterans to evaluate the association between PTSD severity and the presence of metabolic syndrome.

The team reports that 139 subjects met criteria for PTSD, 163 had major depressive disorder (MDD), and 101 had metabolic syndrome.

The prevalence of metabolic syndrome was higher among those with PTSD only (34.3%) than among those with MDD only (28.8%), but it was highest among patients with both PTSD and MDD (46.2%).

MDD alone was not a significant predictor of metabolic syndrome risk, the report indicates.

PTSD severity significantly predicted the risk of metabolic syndrome, the researchers note, with each one-point increase in the Clinician Administered PTSD Scale (CAPS) being associated with one percentage point increase in the risk of metabolic syndrome.

"We would like to add that our findings were in the context of a cross-sectional study, which does not allow us to make any inferences about cause and effect, and that a prospective study that allows for the measurement of health risk and metabolic syndrome status over a period of time would be needed to determine causality," Dr. Heppner pointed out.

"While more research is needed on the specific mechanisms by which patients with PTSD develop these conditions, physicians can encourage these at-risk individuals to adapt healthier lifestyles and practice stress management, and participate in psychological or pharmacological treatment of their PTSD," Dr. Heppner advised.

BMC Medicine 2009; Jan. 9th