Emotional stress increases toll in cardiacs
11:30 • 22.06.12

The emotional toll of a heart attack can be so severe that an estimated 1 in 8 patients who survive the experience develop post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), new research, has found.
While it has long been known that a heart attack affects both physical and mental health, most doctors and patients are not aware that the emotional stress of a life-threatening heart event can develop into full-blown PTSD, Chron.con reports, citing the study.
The disorder, which more typically affects combat veterans and victims of violent crime, can be particularly insidious in heart patients, who live with constant trepidation about their own bodies, frequently paying anxious attention to each heartbeat or twinge of chest discomfort.
While several small studies have suggested PTSD is an issue for heart patients, most have been too small to reach any meaningful conclusions.
In the new report, researchers from Columbia University Medical Center combined the results of 24 studies that had documented post-traumatic stress in a total of 2,383 heart patients.
Their analysis, published online in the journal "PLoS One", found not only that PTSD after a heart attack was far more common than previously believed but also that the disorder doubled the risk of dying of a second event over the next one to three years, compared with those who did not have PTSD.
Symptoms of the disorder include frequent intrusive thoughts about the stressful event, nightmares and sleep problems and anxiety, among others. An estimated 1.4 million patients are discharged from hospitals in the United States each year after a heart attack or other acute coronary event. The study suggests 168,000 develop PTSD.
LATEST NEWS • All Today news
21:07 • 25/05
20:19 • 25/05
Philippines troops clash with Abu Sayyaf - 12 dead
19:33 • 25/05
Hail damages gardens in Lori province
19:13 • 25/05
Woolwich murder sparks anti-Muslim backlash
18:10 • 25/05
Ukraine stages first gay pride march
17:55 • 25/05
Turkmen capital hits Guinness Book of Records
17:23 • 25/05
Armenia’s FM receives outgoing Swiss ambassador
17:14 • 25/05
Chinese vase kept in a battered cardboard box sells for £120,000
17:08 • 25/05
Russian ambassador hands over credentials
16:51 • 25/05
16:23 • 25/05
Lavrov-Mammadyarov meeting ‘does not promt anything’ – military expert
16:00 • 25/05
Syria conflict: Qusair in heavy bombardment by army
15:52 • 25/05
Lawyers to declare strike against Court of Cassation
14:40 • 25/05
'Mafia martyr' Don Giuseppe Puglisi beatified in Sicily
14:25 • 25/05
'Black widow' bomber attacks Russia police
14:12 • 25/05
“Let’s prevent gas tariff rise” to demonstrate civil disobedience
13:24 • 25/05
Nagorno Karabakh president attends opening of archaeological exhibition
13:20 • 25/05
Army’s issues should be solved without interferences – Armed Forces spiritual leader
12:47 • 25/05
Job fair conducted for graduates of Armenia’s State University of Economics
12:33 • 25/05
China seals first free-trade deal with Switzerland
12:09 • 25/05
No Iranian armed forces, military advisors in Syria: Iran UN envoy
11:58 • 25/05
News Corp to split in two on 28 June
11:55 • 25/05
Dorians to give open air concert in Yerevan
11:43 • 25/05
Why developing more brain cells can means we forget the early days of our childhood
11:28 • 25/05
Nagorno Karabakh President receives Hayastan” All-Armenian Fund’s Board of Trustees members
11:25 • 25/05
Wayne Rooney: Man Utd confident forward will stay - David Gill
11:01 • 25/05
58% of public opinion poll respondents say they will leave Armenia in case of gas prices rise
10:46 • 25/05
Zhoghovurd: Armavia fails to pay salaries to pilots, engineers and air stewards for seven months
10:35 • 25/05
Hraparak: Gagik Tsarukyan, Robert Kocharyan discussed PAP status?
10:27 • 25/05
Sweden riots spread beyond Stockholm despite extra police
10:21 • 25/05
France to begin first stage of Mali military withdrawal
10:12 • 25/05
Syria conflict: Opposition willing to attend talks
10:06 • 25/05
Most popular articles
17:55 • 25/05
Turkmen capital hits Guinness Book of Records
20:19 • 25/05
Philippines troops clash with Abu Sayyaf - 12 dead
16:51 • 25/05
11:01 • 25/05
58% of public opinion poll respondents say they will leave Armenia in case of gas prices rise
13:20 • 25/05
Army’s issues should be solved without interferences – Armed Forces spiritual leader
17:08 • 25/05
Russian ambassador hands over credentials
19:13 • 25/05
Woolwich murder sparks anti-Muslim backlash
10:27 • 25/05
Sweden riots spread beyond Stockholm despite extra police
17:23 • 25/05
Armenia’s FM receives outgoing Swiss ambassador
17:14 • 25/05
Chinese vase kept in a battered cardboard box sells for £120,000
- Armenia’s FM receives outgoing Swiss ambassador
- Lavrov-Mammadyarov meeting ‘does not promt anything’ – military expert
- Lawyers to declare strike against Court of Cassation
- “Let’s prevent gas tariff rise” to demonstrate civil disobedience
- Army’s issues should be solved without interferences – Armed Forces spiritual leader



















