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Literature review indicates PTSD may accelerate aging process

PTSD may be associated with accelerated senescence, according to results from a literature review published in the American Journal of Geriatric Psychiatry.

“In recent years, there has been growing concern that psychiatric disorders such as schizophrenia, bipolar disorder and major depression are associated with significant medical comorbidity, and that some of this morbidity may reflect an acceleration of the aging process,” James B. Lohr, MD, of the Veterans Affairs Center of Excellence for Stress and Mental Health, and the University of California, San Diego, and colleagues wrote. “Because of the importance of stress in various aspects of the aging process, we considered that PTSD may also show an association with early senescence.”

James B. Lohr

Researchers reviewed 64 studies relevant to PTSD and senescence published in 2000 or later. Study outcomes included biomarkers of senescence such as leukocyte telomere length and pro-inflammatory markers, prevalence of senescence-associated medical conditions and mortality rates.

All six studies that investigated leukocyte telomere length and PTSD indicated patients with PTSD had shorter leukocyte telomere length compared with patients without PTSD.

Pooled effect size estimates for pro-inflammatory markers indicated that patients with PTSD had higher values for interleukin-1 beta and interleukin-6 vs. control patients.

Regarding oxidative measures, researchers found no significant differences in any blood antioxidant enzyme activities between patients with PTSD and those without, though glutathione peroxidase and superoxide dismutase were significantly positively associated with severity of PTSD symptoms (P < .05, respectively).

There was consistent evidence that PTSD was associated with increased incidence of cardiovascular disease, gastrointestinal ulcers and dementia, and moderate evidence for type 2 diabetes.

The overall pooled hazard ratio for mortality was 1.29 (95% CI, 1.11-1.5; P < .001), indicating a 29% increased risk for mortality among patients with PTSD.

“These findings do not speak to whether accelerated aging is specific to PTSD, but they do argue the need to re-conceptualize PTSD as something more than a mental illness,” Lohr said in a press release. “Early senescence, increased medical morbidity and premature mortality in PTSD have implications in health care beyond simply treating PTSD symptoms. Our findings warrant a deeper look at this phenomenon and a more integrated medical-psychiatric approach to their care.” – by Amanda Oldt

Disclosure: The researchers report no relevant financial disclosures.