Citation

Kang N, Lim JS, Hwang TG, Joe SH, Lee MS. Psychiatry Investig. 2015; 12(2): 197-203.

Affiliation

Guro Community Mental Health Center, Seoul, Republic of Korea. ; Department of Psychiatry, Korea University Medical Center, Seoul, Republic of Korea. ; Korea University Research Institute of Mental Health, Seoul, Republic of Korea.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2015, Korean Neuropsychiatric Association)

DOI

10.4306/pi.2015.12.2.197

PMID

25866520

Abstract

OBJECTIVE: Type D (distressed) personality can be regarded as a promising cardiovascular risk marker that has been repeatedly linked to relevant indicators of mental health, quality of life, morbidity, and mortality in cardiac patients. Heart rate variability (HRV) is a non-invasive technology that can provide information regarding a patient's sympathetic/parasympathetic balance and the control mechanisms of the autonomic systems in the cardiovascular system. As both type D personality and HRV are parameters related to the cardiovascular system, we assumed a relationship between type D personality and HRV. This study set out to identify the relationship between type D and HRV and the differences in HRV variables between type D and non-type D personalities.

METHODS: Patients who visited Guro Community Mental Health Center from January 2011 to December 2012 were surveyed. They were evaluated using both the Korean version of the Type D Personality-14 for type D personality and HRV. During the survey, those who reported major cardiovascular disease that can affect heart rate variability were excluded from the study.

RESULTS: Our analysis included 559 participants, 249 of whom were classified as type D personality. No significant differences were found in the HRV variables between the type D group and the non-type D group. There were also no clinically meaningful correlations between HRV variables and type D total/subscale scores when controlled for patient age.

CONCLUSION: A relationship between HRV and type D personality was not identified using short-term HRV measurements in non-clinical patients with no definitive cardiovascular disease. Further studies using long-term HRV measurements in patients with cardiovascular disease are necessary to conclude an association between HRV and type D personality.

Language: en