Exploring senior doctors' beliefs and attitudes regarding mental illness within the medical profession: a qualitative study.

OBJECTIVE: To explore the views of senior doctors on mental illness within the medical profession. BACKGROUND: There has been increasing interest on the issue of doctors' mental health. However, there have been few qualitative studies on senior doctors' general attitude towards mental illness within the medical profession. SETTING: Large North London teaching hospital. PARTICIPANTS: 13 hospital consultants and senior academic general practitioners. METHODS: A qualitative study involving semi-structured interviews and reflective work. The outcome measures were the themes derived from the thematic framework approach to analysis. RESULTS: Four main themes were identified. (1) 'Doctors' attitudes to mental illness'-doctors felt that there remained a significant stigma attached to suffering from a mental illness within the profession. (2) 'Barriers to seeking help'-doctors felt that there were numerous barriers to seeking help such as negative career implications, being perceived as weak, denial and fear of prejudice. (3) 'Support'-doctors felt that the use of support depended on certainty concerning confidentiality, which for occupational health was not thought to be guaranteed. Confiding in colleagues was rare except among close friends. Supervision for all doctors was raised. (4) 'General Medical Council (GMC) involvement'-doctors felt that uneasy referring colleagues to the GMC and the appraisal and revalidation process was thought not to be thorough enough in picking up doctors with a mental illness. CONCLUSIONS: Owing to the small size of this study, the conclusions are limited; however, if the findings are confirmed by larger studies, they suggest that greater efforts are needed to destigmatise mental illness in the profession and improve support for doctors. Additional research should be carried out into doctors' views on occupational health services in managing doctors with mental illness, the provision of supervision for all doctors and the effectiveness of the current appraisal and revalidation process at identifying doctors with a mental illness.

Mood and transient cardiac dysfunction in everyday life.

Emotion in daily life may be associated with transient myocardial ischemia, ventricular tachycardia and impaired autonomic function in cardiac patients, but the precise temporal sequence is unclear. Eighty-eight patients with suspected coronary artery disease underwent 24-h electrocardiographic monitoring, and affect was measured with the Day Reconstruction Method. Thirteen patients (15%) experienced one or more episodes of ST depression or ventricular tachycardia, nine of whom provided concurrent mood data. Mood and heart rate variability were analyzed for the 15 min before, during, and 15 min after each ST depression/ventricular tachycardia episode, and were compared with control periods not associated with cardiac dysfunction. Patients reported more negative mood in the 15 min preceding cardiac dysfunction compared with control periods (P = 0.02). Heart rate increased in the 5 min before cardiac dysfunction (P = 0.005), whereas low frequency heart rate variability was reduced at onset but not before cardiac dysfunction (P = 0.007). There were not changes in high frequency heart rate variability. This small study indicates that emotional state may contribute to vulnerability of cardiac dysfunction in everyday life.

Hostility and physiological responses to laboratory stress in acute coronary syndrome patients.

OBJECTIVE: Evidence suggests that emotional stress can trigger acute coronary syndromes in patients with advanced coronary artery disease (CAD), although the mechanisms involved remain unclear. Hostility is associated with heightened reactivity to stress in healthy individuals, and with an elevated risk of adverse cardiac events in CAD patients. This study set out to test whether hostile individuals with advanced CAD were also more stress responsive. METHODS: Thirty-four men (aged 55.9+/-9.3 years) who had recently survived an acute coronary syndrome took part in laboratory testing. Trait hostility was assessed by the Cook Medley Hostility Scale, and cardiovascular activity, salivary cortisol, and plasma concentrations of interleukin-6 were assessed at baseline, during performance of two mental tasks, and during a 2-h recovery. RESULTS: Participants with higher hostility scores had heightened systolic and diastolic blood pressure (BP) reactivity to tasks (both P<.05), as well as a more sustained increase in systolic BP at 2 h post-task (P=.024), independent of age, BMI, smoking status, medication, and baseline BP. Hostility was also associated with elevated plasma interleukin-6 (IL-6) levels at 75 min (P=.023) and 2 h (P=.016) poststress and was negatively correlated with salivary cortisol at 75 min (P=.034). CONCLUSION: Hostile individuals with advanced cardiovascular disease may be particularly susceptible to stress-induced increases in sympathetic activity and inflammation. These mechanisms may contribute to an elevated risk of emotionally triggered cardiac events in such patients.

The long-term effects of acute triggers of acute coronary syndromes on adaptation and quality of life.

BACKGROUND: A proportion of acute coronary syndromes (ACS) are thought to be triggered acutely by physical exertion, emotional stress and other stimuli. We assessed the consequences of triggering for long-term adaptation following ACS. METHODS: We assessed mental and physical health status in 150 male and 44 female ACS survivors 12 and 36 months after cardiac events using standardised questionnaire measures. Triggers were assessed by interview an average of 2.56 days after hospital admission. Emotional triggers were defined as moderate or intense anger, stress or sadness/depressed mood in the 2 h before symptom onset, while vigorous physical exertion was defined as activity >/=6 metabolic equivalents in the hour before symptom onset. Clinical characteristics, psychiatric history, health behaviours and the Global Registry of Acute Coronary Events (Grace) risk algorithm were also assessed. RESULTS: Emotional triggers predicted elevated anxiety and poor mental health status at 12 months independently of age, gender, socioeconomic status, ACS presentation, Grace risk scores, pre-admission medication, anxiety in hospital, depression history and symptom recurrence (p<0.001). Effects persisted at 36 months. Emotional triggers were not related to physical health status at follow up. By contrast, impaired physical health status was predicted by vigorous exertion during the trigger period independently of covariates (p=0.019). CONCLUSIONS: ACS triggering has a long-term impact on adaptation and quality of life, with differential effects of physical and emotional triggers.

Marital status and heart rate variability in patients with suspected coronary artery disease.

BACKGROUND: Married individuals are at reduced risk of cardiovascular disease morbidity and mortality. Recent research indicates that impaired heart rate variability (HRV) may contribute to cardiovascular disease morbidity and mortality and has also been associated with social isolation. PURPOSE: We investigated associations between HRV and marital status in patients with suspected coronary artery disease (CAD). METHODS: Eighty-eight patients who were being investigated for suspected CAD (28 women, 60 men, mean age 61.6, 60% married) were recruited from three rapid access chest pain clinics in London. Heart rate variability was measured using 24-h electrocardiograms and analyzed using frequency and time-domain measures. RESULTS: Unmarried marital status was associated with reduced heart rate variability as indexed by both frequency and time-domain measures, independently of age, gender, beta-blocker use, depression ratings, and subsequent diagnosis of significant CAD. CONCLUSION: These findings suggest that reduced heart rate variability is associated with not being married and may contribute to the reliably observed relationship between marital status and cardiovascular disease morbidity and mortality.

Practical support predicts medication adherence and attendance at cardiac rehabilitation following acute coronary syndrome.

OBJECTIVE: Poor social support is associated with recurrent cardiac events following acute coronary syndrome (ACS). Interventions have largely targeted emotional support, but practical support may be particularly important in encouraging recovery behaviors. We assessed whether practical and emotional support differentially predicted medication adherence and rehabilitation attendance following ACS. METHODS: This prospective observational clinical cohort study involved 262 survivors of verified ACS, recruited from four coronary care units in the London area. Practical and emotional support were measured in hospital, and depression, 7-10 days after discharge. Medication adherence and rehabilitation attendance were assessed by telephone interview 12 months after hospitalization. RESULTS: Nearly one third of patients (29.8%) had no practical supports, 16% had one, and 54.2% had two or more sources of practical support. Patients with greater practical support were more likely to adhere to medication (P=.034) independently of age, gender, marital status, clinical risk profile, and depression. There was also an association with rehabilitation attendance (P=.034), but this was no longer significant after depression had been taken into account. Emotional support was unrelated to medication adherence and rehabilitation attendance. CONCLUSIONS: Cardiac patients with greater practical support may receive more prompts about medications, help with filling prescriptions and assistance with cardiac rehabilitation attendance. These behaviors can influence long-term recovery.

Depressed mood, positive affect, and heart rate variability in patients with suspected coronary artery disease.

OBJECTIVE: To test associations between heart rate variability (HRV), depressed mood, and positive affect in patients with suspected coronary artery disease (CAD). Depression is associated with impaired HRV post acute cardiac events, but evidence in patients with stable coronary artery disease (CAD) is inconsistent. METHODS: Seventy-six patients (52 men, 24 women; mean age = 61.1 years) being investigated for suspected CAD on the basis of symptomatology and positive noninvasive tests, completed 24-hour electrocardiograms. The Beck Depression Inventory (BDI) was administered, and positive and depressed affect was measured over the study period with the Day Reconstruction Method (DRM). A total of 46 (60.5%) patients were later found to have definite CAD. HRV was analyzed, using spectral analysis. RESULTS: Typical diurnal profiles of HRV were observed, with greater normalized high frequency (HF) and lower normalized low frequency (LF) power in the night compared with the day. BDI depression scores were not consistently associated with HRV. But positive affect was associated with greater normalized HF power (p = .039) and reduced normalized LF power (p = .007) independently of age, gender, medication with beta blockers, CAD status, body mass index, smoking, and habitual physical activity level. In patients with definite CAD, depressed affect assessed using the DRM was associated with reduced normalized HF power and heightened normalized LF power (p = .007) independently of covariates. CONCLUSIONS: Relationships between depression and HRV in patients with CAD may depend on affective experience over the monitoring period. Enhanced parasympathetic cardiac control may be a process through which positive affect protects against cardiovascular disease.

Depression is associated with flatter cortisol rhythms in patients with coronary artery disease.

OBJECTIVE: Depression is associated with coronary heart disease, but the underlying mechanisms are not fully understood. Cortisol is involved in the development of coronary artery disease (CAD), but evidence directly linking depression with cortisol in patients with CAD is limited. This study evaluated cortisol output over the day in patients with suspected CAD in relation to depressive symptoms. METHODS: Eighty-eight patients who were being investigated for suspected CAD (defined by clinical symptoms plus positive exercise tests or myocardial perfusion scans) took eight saliva samples over the day and evening. Depressed mood was assessed with the Beck Depression Inventory. Actigraphy was used to define time of waking objectively. RESULTS: The cortisol awakening response and cortisol rhythm over the remainder of the day and evening were analyzed separately. Fifty-two (61.9%) patients were later found to have definite CAD on angiography, while the remainder did not. The cortisol slope over the day was flatter in more depressed patients with CAD (P<.001) but was not related to depression in patients without CAD (P=.68). This effect was due to the combination of lower cortisol early in the day and higher cortisol in the evening in more depressed CAD patients, independent of age, gender, medication, and times of waking and sleeping (P=.003). Additionally, cortisol measured on waking and 15 and 30 min after waking was greater in CAD than in non-CAD patients (P=.04), but was not related to depression. CONCLUSIONS: The flatter cortisol rhythms of more depressed CAD patients may contribute to the progression of coronary atherosclerosis.

The cortisol awakening response in relation to objective and subjective measures of waking in the morning.

Studies of the salivary cortisol awakening response (CAR) may be confounded by delays between waking in the morning and obtaining the 'waking' salivary sample. We used wrist actigraphy to provide objective information about waking time, and studied the influence of delays in taking the waking sample on the CAR. Eighty-three men and women (mean age 61.30 years) who were referred to hospital with suspected coronary artery disease were studied. Saliva samples were obtained on waking and 15 and 30 min later. The mean interval between waking defined by actigraphy and reported waking time was 6.12+/-(S.D.) 14.8 min, with 55.4% having no delay. The waking saliva sample was obtained an average 5.78+/-15.0 min after self-reported waking, and 12.24+/-20.3 min after objective waking. The waking cortisol value was significantly higher in participants who had a delay between waking and sampling >15 min (mean 14.46+/-6.34 nmol/l) than in those with zero (mean 10.45+/-6.41 nmol/l) or 1-15 min delays (mean 11.51+/-5.99 nmol/l, p=0.043). Cortisol did not increase between 15 and 30 min after waking in those who delayed >15 min. There were no differences in CAR between participants with zero and 1-15 min delays from objectively defined waking to reported sample times. A small proportion (14.7%) of participants who did not delay saliva sampling showed no increase in cortisol over the 30 min after waking. These CAR nonresponders did not differ from the remainder on sleep patterns, waking time, clinical or medication characteristics, but were more likely to be of higher socioeconomic status (p=0.009). We conclude that long delays between waking and obtaining 'waking' cortisol samples will lead to misleading CAR results, but that delays up to 15 min may not be problematic. A small minority of individuals do not show a positive CAR despite not delaying saliva sampling after waking.

Emotional triggers of acute coronary syndromes: strength of evidence, biological processes, and clinical implications.

Emotional triggers of acute coronary syndromes include population-level events such as earthquakes and terrorist attacks, and individual experiences of acute anger, stress and depression. The methodology of studying emotional triggers has developed markedly over recent years, though limitations remain. The biological processes underlying triggering include acute autonomic dysregulation, neuroendocrine activation, hemostatic and inflammatory responses which, when associated with plaque disruption, promote myocardial ischemia, cardiac dysrhythmia and thrombosis formation. Prevention and management strategies for ameliorating emotional triggering remain to be effectively developed.

Psychological and clinical predictors of return to work after acute coronary syndrome.

AIMS: Resumption of paid employment following acute coronary syndrome (ACS) is an important indicator of recovery, but has not been studied extensively in the modern era of acute patient care. METHODS AND RESULTS: A total of 126 patients who had worked before hospitalization for ACS were studied with measures of previous clinical history, ACS type and severity, clinical management, and sociodemographic characteristics. Depressed mood (Beck Depression Inventory) and type D personality were measured 7-10 days following admission. Among them, 101 (80.2%) had returned to work 12-13 months later. Failure to resume work was associated with cardiac factors on admission (heart failure, arrhythmia), cardiac complications during the intervening months, and depression scores during hospitalization. It was not related to age, gender, socioeconomic status, type of ACS, cardiac history, acute clinical management, or type D personality. In multivariate analysis, the likelihood of returning to work was negatively associated with depression, independently of clinical and demographic factors [adjusted odds ratio 0.90, CI 0.82-0.99, P=0.032]. CONCLUSION: Depressed mood measured soon after admission is a predictor of returning to work following ACS. The management of early depressed mood might promote the resumption of economic activity and enhance the quality of life of cardiac patients.

Pathophysiological processes underlying emotional triggering of acute cardiac events.

Acute negative emotional states may act as triggers of acute coronary syndrome (ACS), but the biological mechanisms involved are not known. Heightened platelet activation and hemodynamic shear stress provoked by acute stress may contribute. Here we investigated whether patients whose ACS had been preceded by acute anger, stress, or depression would show heightened hemodynamic and platelet activation in response to psychophysiological stress testing. We studied 34 male patients an average of 15 months after they had survived a documented ACS. According to an interview conducted within 5 days of hospital admission, 14 men had experienced acute negative emotion in the 2 h before symptom onset, and 20 men had not experienced any negative emotion. Hemodynamic variables and platelet activation were monitored during performance of challenging color-word interference and public speaking tasks and over a 2-h poststress recovery period. The emotion trigger group showed significantly greater increases in monocyte-platelet, leukocyte-platelet, and neutrophil-platelet aggregate responses to stress than the nontrigger group, after adjusting for age, body mass, smoking status, and medication. Monocyte-platelet aggregates remained elevated for 30 min after stress in the emotion trigger group. The emotion trigger group also showed poststress delayed recovery of systolic pressure and cardiac output compared with the nontrigger group. These results suggest that some patients with coronary artery disease may be particularly susceptible to emotional triggering of ACS because of heightened platelet activation in response to psychological stress, coupled with impaired hemodynamic poststress recovery.