Loading...
2 results
Search Results
Now showing 1 - 2 of 2
- Patients with AUD exhibit dampened heart rate variability during sleep as compared to social drinkersPublication . Wemm, Stephanie; Golden, Max; S. Martins, Jorge; Fogelman, Nia; Sinha, RajitaChronic heavy alcohol use profoundly affects the cardiovascular system, contributing to several life-threatening cardiovascular diseases. Heart rate variability (HRV), or the fluctuations in heart rate, reflects dynamic autonomic nervous system processes that change to meet biological demands and environmental challenges. In the current study, we examined whether HRV metrics are altered in alcohol use disorder (AUD) during waking and sleeping with passive biomonitoring as participants went about their daily lives. Social drinkers (standard deviation: n = 10, 5 female) and treatment-seeking individuals with moderate to severe AUD (n = 16, 7 female) provided continuous, real-world heart rate monitoring for 5 days of monitoring on average (M = 5.27 ± 2.22). Five indices of respiration and HRV—respiratory sinus arrhythmia (RSA) amplitude, high frequency (HF), low frequency (LF), HF/LF ratio, root-mean-square standard deviation (RMSSD), and standard deviation of the N–N intervals (SDNN)—were analyzed separately for waking and sleeping hours. Both RMSSD and SDNN decreased the longer the participants were awake (Ps < .013). During sleeping hours, HF, RSA amplitude, RMSSD, and SDNN were significantly higher in light social drinkers as compared to patients with AUD (all Ps < .009), indicating higher parasympathetic activation during sleep in the SD versus AUD group. Sleep and waking HRV measures were significantly correlated with patient-reported symptoms of depression and sleep difficulties in the AUD group (Ps < .05). This natural observational study utilizing continuous autonomic biomonitoring in the real world indicates parasympathetic dysfunction that is clearly detectable during sleep in AUD and HRV measures, which are also related to clinical, patient-related symptoms of AUD.
- Brain correlates and functional connectivity linking stress, autonomic dysregulation, and alcohol motivationPublication . Seo, Dongju; Martins, Jorge S.; Sinha, RajitaHigh stress is a key risk factor for alcohol use disorder (AUD) and often accompanied by physiological dysregulation including autonomic nervous system (ANS) disruptions. However, neural mechanisms underlying drinking behaviors associated with stress and ANS disruptions remain unclear. The current study aims to understand neural correlates of stress, ANS disruptions, and subsequent alcohol intake in social drinkers with risky drinking. Using functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI), we investigated brain and heart rate (HR) autonomic responses during brief exposure to stress, alcohol, and neutral cues utilizing a well-validated, individualized imagery paradigm in 48 social drinkers of which 26 reported high-risk drinking (HD) while 22 reported low-risk drinking (LD) patterns. Results indicated that HD individuals showed stress and ANS disruptions with increased basal HR, stress-induced craving, and decreased brain response to stress exposure in frontal-striatal regions including the ventromedial prefrontal cortex (VmPFC), anterior cingulate cortex, striatum, insula, and temporal gyrus. Furthermore, whole-brain correlation analysis indicated that greater basal HR was associated with hypoactive VmPFC, but hyperactive medulla oblongata (MOb) responses during stress, with an inverse association between activity in the VmPFC and Mob (whole-brain corrected (WBC), p < 0.05). Functional connectivity with the MOb as a seed to the whole brain indicated that HD versus LD had decreased functional connectivity between the VmPFC and MOb during stress (WBC, p < 0.05). In addition, those with more compromised functional connectivity between the VmPFC and MOb during stress consumed greater amount of alcohol beverage during an experimental alcohol taste test conducted on a separate day, as well as in their self-reported weekly alcohol intake. Together, these results indicate that stress-related, dysfunctional VmPFC control over brain regions of autonomic arousal contributes to greater alcohol motivation and may be a significant risk factor for hazardous alcohol use in non-dependent social drinkers. Findings also suggest that restoring VmPFC integrity in modulating autonomic arousal during stress may be critical for preventing the development of AUD.