Mh. Townsend et al., HEART-RATE AND BLOOD-PRESSURE IN PANIC DISORDER, MAJOR DEPRESSION, AND COMORBID PANIC DISORDER WITH MAJOR DEPRESSION, Psychiatry research, 79(2), 1998, pp. 187-190
Secondary major depression is common in patients with panic disorder (
PD) and has been reported to worsen prognosis. Little is known about t
he effect of comorbid depression on the autonomic symptoms associated
with PD. In this study, the heart rate and blood pressure of 44 patien
ts with PD, 20 patients with major depression (MD), and 12 patients wi
th both panic disorder and depression (PDD) were measured during postu
ral challenge. Patients with PDD were found to have higher diastolic a
nd systolic pressures throughout (P < 0.05), and to have a higher rest
ing cardiac load (P < 0.05). This heightened autonomic arousal remaine
d when the effects of age, race, and the frequency of panic attacks we
re removed. The results suggest that PDD patients may have increased a
utonomic dysfunction. (C) 1998 Elsevier Science Ireland Ltd. All right
s reserved.