Factores psicosociales implicados en el control de la hipertensión arterial

Perseverative Cognition as a Mediator Between Personality Traits and Blood Pressure

Purpose

Several authors link hypertension with psychological dispositions such as stress, personality, and anxiety, some propose that stress is not enough to explain arterial hypertension and others propose the perseverative cognition model to explain. The aim of this study was to relate personality traits and blood pressure profile of a group of workers, examining the results of perseverative cognition as a possible mediating variable concerning blood pressure.

Patients and Methods

Cross-sectional design study, with a sample of 76 employees of a Colombian university. The NEO-FFI, RRS, and blood pressure measurement instruments were applied; data were reviewed through correlation and mediation analysis.

Results

We found evidence of association between neuroticism and perseverative cognition (rho=0.42 with brooding; rho =0.32 with reflection), but no evidence about mediation of perseverative cognition between personality and blood pressure.

Conclusion

It is necessary to keep researching the mechanisms related to the occurrence of hypertension.

Depression and sleep disorders related to hypertension: A cross-sectional study in Medellín, Colombia

INTRODUCTION

Psychosocial factors have been shown to be potentiators and triggers of cardiovascular diseases such as hypertension. The purpose of the study is to explore the relationship between psychosocial factors and the presence of hypertension in a random population sample in the city of Medellin.

METHODS

Observational cross-sectional study with an analytical approach. The endpoint (hypertension) was contrasted with the psychosocial and sociodemographic endpoints by means of a bivariate analysis, and later a multivariate logistic regression analysis was carried out.

RESULTS

After adjusting for age, gender and stressful life events, depression (OR=1.65; 95% CI: 1.13-2.41) and sleep disorders (OR=1.41; 95% CI: 1.00-1.98) were found to be psychosocial factors associated with hypertension.

CONCLUSIONS

Depression and sleep disorders are related to hypertension. In Colombia there are studies that correlate psychosocial factors such as depression with hypertension; however, the impact of sleep disorders on the population is unknown.