Please use this identifier to cite or link to this item: https://ahro.austin.org.au/austinjspui/handle/1/35592
Title: Breathlessness, but not breathing instability, varies with posttraumatic stress symptoms in university students.
Austin Authors: Tjondrorahardja, Eugenia Janice;Poon, Teng Teng Sophia;Avraam, Joanne ;Schenker, Maya;Felmingham, Kim L;Jordan, Amy S 
Affiliation: Melbourne School of Psychological Sciences, University of Melbourne, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia.
Respiratory and Sleep Medicine
Institute for Breathing and Sleep
Issue Date: 1-Nov-2024
Date: 2024
Publication information: Journal of Applied Physiology (Bethesda, Md. : 1985) 2024-11-01; 137(5)
Abstract: Obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) is a chronic sleep-related breathing disorder that is highly prevalent in individuals with posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD). The reason for this high prevalence remains unclear. We hypothesized that breathing instability, one of the key contributors to OSA, may be altered in PTSD and predispose OSA. Healthy participants (214 females, 98 males) aged 17 to 42 (M = 19.92; SD = 2.85) completed online questionnaires measuring PTSD symptomatology, sleep disturbances, and self-reported breathlessness. A subset of these participants (16 females, 14 males) aged 18 to 42 (M = 23.50; SD = 7.18) completed an in-lab breathing instability assessment, whereby they performed a series of 20-second and maximal duration breath-holds. PTSD severity positively predicted subjective perceptions of breathlessness (P < 0.001) but not objective measures of breathing instability, namely ventilation following 20-s breath-holds (P = 0.93) and maximal breath-hold duration (P = 0.41). These results suggest that breathing instability may not be the driving factor behind the high prevalence of OSA in PTSD. Instead, other factors such as a low arousal threshold, elevated ventilatory responses to arousal, or coexisting insomnia may explain the high rates of OSA in PTSD. One explanation for the discrepancy between subjective breathlessness and breathing stability measures relating to PTSD severity may be that hypervigilance and increased anxiety impacted self-perceptions of breathlessness while not altering breathing instability per se.NEW & NOTEWORTHY Obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) is more common in individuals with posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) than the general population for unknown reasons. This study assessed one of the key contributors to OSA, respiratory control instability, in young students with a range of posttraumatic stress symptoms. Although individuals with high PTSD symptoms reported increased subjective breathlessness, objectively measured breathing instability was not altered, suggesting respiratory instability is unlikely to increase the risk of OSA in PTSD.
URI: https://ahro.austin.org.au/austinjspui/handle/1/35592
DOI: 10.1152/japplphysiol.00135.2024
ORCID: 0000-0001-8561-9766
Journal: Journal of Applied Physiology (Bethesda, Md. : 1985)
Start page: 1458
End page: 1469
PubMed URL: 39417820
ISSN: 1522-1601
Type: Journal Article
Subjects: dyspnea
mood
obstructive sleep apnea
panic disorder
stress
Stress Disorders, Post-Traumatic/physiopathology
Stress Disorders, Post-Traumatic/epidemiology
Dyspnea/physiopathology
Dyspnea/psychology
Students/psychology
Sleep Apnea, Obstructive/physiopathology
Sleep Apnea, Obstructive/epidemiology
Appears in Collections:Journal articles

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