Citation

Blanchard EB, Hickling EJ, Galovski T, Veazey C. J. Trauma. Stress 2002; 15(3): 199-204.

Affiliation

Center for Stress and Anxiety Disorders, University at Albany, New York 12203, USA. ssa@albany.edu

Copyright

(Copyright © 2002, International Society for Traumatic Stress Studies, Publisher John Wiley and Sons)

DOI

10.1023/A:1015299126858

PMID

12092911

Abstract

Seeking to replicate earlier reports by Shalev et al. (1998) and R. A. Bryant, A. G. Harvey, R. M. Guthrie, and M. L. Moulds (2000) that elevated heart rate (HR) shortly after a trauma was predictive of later posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), we examined vital sign data on 74 treatment-seeking motor vehicle accident (MVA) survivors, taken in the Emergency Department (ED) following their MVAs. Contrary to expectations, we found that those with elevated HRs in the ED were significantly less likely to meet criteria for PTSD 13 months post-MVA and that those with elevated HRs had lower levels of posttraumatic stress symptoms. Likewise, those with current PTSD had lower ED values of HR and DBP than did those who did not currently meet criteria for PTSD.

Language: en