Journal
BRAIN BEHAVIOR AND IMMUNITY
Volume 59, Issue -, Pages 260-264Publisher
ACADEMIC PRESS INC ELSEVIER SCIENCE
DOI: 10.1016/j.bbi.2016.09.012
Keywords
Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD); Inflammation; Cytokines; Depression; Combat
Categories
Funding
- United States Department of Defense [W81XWH-11-2-0223]
- U.S. Department of Defense [W81XWH-10-1-0021]
- Mental Illness Research, Education and Clinical Center (MIRECC)
- Swedish Research Council [2015-00387]
- Marie Sklodowska Curie Actions [INCA 600398]
- Swedish Society of Medicine
- Soderstrom-Konigska Foundation
- Sjobring Foundation
- OM Persson Foundation
- province of Scania (Sweden)
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Introduction: Several lines of evidence indicate that increased inflammation is associated with Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD). We have previously reported that peripheral inflammatory markers are significantly higher in combat-exposed veterans with than without PTSD. This study was designed to replicate these findings in a new study cohort using the same population and recruitment strategies. Methods: Sixty-one male war veterans (31 PTSD and 30 control subjects) were included in this replication study. Levels of Interleukin-6, Tumor Necrosis Factor-alpha, Gamma interferon, and high-sensitivity C-reactive protein were quantified in blood samples. A standardized total pro-inflammatory score was calculated to limit the number of statistical comparisons. The Clinician Administered PTSD Scale (CAPS) rating scale was used to assess PTSD symptom severity. Results: PTSD subjects had significantly higher total pro-inflammatory scores compared to non-PTSD subjects in unadjusted analysis (Cohen's d = 0.75, p = 0.005) as well as after adjusting for potentially confounding effects of age, BMI, smoking, and potentially interfering medications and somatic co-morbidities (p = 0.023). There were no significant correlations between inflammatory markers and severity of symptoms within the PTSD group. Conclusions: We replicated, in a new sample, our previous finding of increased inflammatory markers in combat-exposed PTSD subjects compared to combat-exposed non-PTSD controls. These findings strongly add to the growing literature suggesting that immune activation may be an important aspect of PTSD pathophysiology, although not directly correlated with current PTSD symptom levels in the PTSD group. (C) 2016 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
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