Abstract
Recent concerns over the impact of antidepressant medications, including the selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs), on cardiovascular function highlight the importance of research on the moderating effects of specific lifestyle factors such as physical activity. Studies in affective neuroscience have demonstrated robust acute effects of SSRIs, yet the impact of SSRIs on cardiovascular stress responses and the moderating effects of physical activity remain to be determined. This was the goal of the present study, which involved a double-blind, randomized, placebo-controlled, cross-over trial of a single-dose of escitalopram (20 mg) in 44 healthy females; outcomes were heart rate (HR) and its variability. Participants engaging in at least 30 min of vigorous physical activity at least 3 times per week (regular exercisers) showed a more resilient cardiovascular stress response than irregular vigorous exercisers, a finding associated with a moderate effect size (Cohen's d = 0.48). Escitalopram attenuated the cardiovascular stress response in irregular exercisers only (HR decreased: Cohen's d = 0.80; HR variability increased: Cohen's d = 0.33). HR during stress under escitalopram in the irregular exercisers was similar to that during stress under placebo in regular exercisers. These findings highlight that the effects of regular vigorous exercise during stress are comparable to the effects of an acute dose of escitalopram, highlighting the beneficial effects of this particular antidepressant in irregular exercisers. Given that antidepressant drugs alone do not seem to protect patients from cardiovascular disease (CVD), longitudinal studies are needed to evaluate the impact of exercise on cardiovascular stress responses in patients receiving long-term antidepressant treatment.
Highlights
Depression and cardiovascular disease (CVD) are leading burdens of disease and this burden is projected to worsen up to 2030 and beyond with ageing of the population and increasing prevalence of multi-morbidity (Mathers and Loncar, 2006; Langan et al, 2013)
Acute psychological stress is associated with parasympathetic withdrawal, sympathetic activation, an increase in heart rate (HR) and reductions in its variability (Madden and Savard, 1995; Porges, 1995; Steptoe and Kivimäki, 2012), while chronic stress is associated with persistent cardiovascular stress responses, which may contribute to psychiatric illness, physical ill-health and all-cause www.frontiersin.org
Recent research in outpatients with coronary heart disease and depression (Blumenthal et al, 2012) demonstrates that exercise and sertraline are effective at reducing depressive symptoms after 16 weeks of treatment, but that exercise led to greater improvements in heart rate variability (HRV) collected using 24-h Holter recordings compared with sertraline
Summary
Depression and cardiovascular disease (CVD) are leading burdens of disease and this burden is projected to worsen up to 2030 and beyond with ageing of the population and increasing prevalence of multi-morbidity (Mathers and Loncar, 2006; Langan et al, 2013). Recent research in outpatients with coronary heart disease and depression (Blumenthal et al, 2012) demonstrates that exercise and sertraline (a SSRI) are effective at reducing depressive symptoms after 16 weeks of treatment, but that exercise led to greater improvements in HRV collected using 24-h Holter recordings compared with sertraline. It remains unclear, to what extent physical activity and SSRIs interact in moderating the effects of SSRIs on psychological stress. We hypothesized that acute administration of escitalopram would attenuate increases in HR and decreases in HRV during stress, relative to placebo, and that regular vigorous exercise would facilitate this effect
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