Terrorism, acute stress, and cardiovascular health: a 3-year national study following the September 11th attacks
Abstract
The terrorist attacks of 9/11 (September 11, 2001) present an unusual opportunity to examine prospectively the physical health impact of extreme stress in a national sample. To examine the degree to which acute stress reactions to the 9/11 terrorist attacks predict cardiovascular outcomes in a national probability sample over the subsequent 3 years. A national probability sample of 2729 adults (78.1% participation rate), 95.0% of whom had completed a health survey before 9/11 (final health sample, 2592), completed a Web-based assessment of acute stress responses approximately 9 to 14 days after the terrorist attacks. Follow-up health surveys reassessed physician-diagnosed cardiovascular ailments 1 (n = 1923, 84.3% participation rate), 2 (n = 1576, 74.2% participation rate), and 3 (n = 1950, 78.9% participation rate) years following the attacks. Reports of physician-diagnosed cardiovascular ailments over the 3 years following the attacks. Acute stress responses to the 9/11 attacks were associated with a 53% increased incidence of cardiovascular ailments over the 3 subsequent years, even after adjusting for pre-9/11 cardiovascular and mental health status, degree of exposure to the attacks, cardiovascular risk factors (ie, smokin...Continue Reading
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