Gender differences in associations of diurnal blood pressure variation, awake physical activity, and sleep quality with negative affect - The work site blood pressure study

This study reports on the associations among depression, anxiety, awake phy sical activity, sleep quality (assessed by nocturnal physical activity), an d diurnal blood pressure (BP) variation in a nonpsychiatric sample (The Wor k Site Blood Pressure Study). We conducted ambulatory BP (ABP) monitoring a nd actigraphy in 231 working men and women. Depression and anxiety were mea sured by the Brief Symptom Inventory. There were gender-specific associatio ns between depression or anxiety and ABP parameters. In men, depression was associated positively with the sleep/awake systolic BP (SBP) ratio (r=0.24 , P=0.006). After controlling for age, body mass index, and awake and sleep activity, depression remained significantly associated with the sleep/awak e SBP ratio (r=0.25, P=0.005) and was also significantly related to sleep S BP (r=0.21, P=0.02). Anxiety, which was related to depression (r=0.73, P <0 .0001), had a similar but slightly weaker pattern of associations with ABP and activity. These associations were not found in women, but there were as sociations of anxiety with awake SBP (r=0.24, P=0.01) and pulse rate (r=0.2 7, P=0.006). In conclusion, depression is associated with disrupted diurnal BP variation independent of ambulatory physical activity in working men, w hereas anxiety is associated with awake SBP and pulse rate in women.