Table 1.
Baseline characteristics pre- and postbreathing trial
| Variable | DGB |
Sham |
P Value (Pre) |
P Value (Pre vs. Post) |
||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pre | Post | Pre | Post | Condition | Device | Device × Condition | ||
| Age, yr | 36 ± 8 | 34 ± 6 | 0.434 | |||||
| BMI, kg/m2 | 30 ± 6 | 28 ± 7 | 0.491 | |||||
| Race (B/W) | 6/6 | 12/1 | 0.030* | |||||
| Sex (F/M) | 2/10 | 4/9 | 0.645 | |||||
| CAPS-IV score | 69 ± 23 | 67 ± 13 | 64 ± 23 | 52 ± 28 | 0.648 | 0.092 | 0.143 | 0.145 |
| PCL-M score | 67 ± 15 | 55 ± 24 | 57 ± 20 | 57 ± 19 | 0.297 | 0.204 | 0.790 | 0.493 |
| Smoking (Yes/No) | 7/5 | 9/4 | 0.688 | |||||
| Prazosin (Yes/No) | 5/7 | 1/12 | 0.073 | |||||
| SSRI (Yes/No) | 6/6 | 10/3 | 0.226 | |||||
| Depression (Yes/No) | 6/6 | 8/5 | 0.695 | |||||
| SBP, mmHg | 121 ± 11 | 121 ± 12 | 122 ± 11 | 118 ± 12 | 0.859 | 0.234 | 0.777 | 0.288 |
| DBP, mmHg | 78 ± 11 | 80 ± 13 | 78 ± 9 | 78 ± 12 | 0.980 | 0.521 | 0.806 | 0.548 |
| PP, mmHg | 44 ± 8 | 41 ± 9 | 44 ± 7 | 40 ± 8 | 0.815 | 0.046* | 0.947 | 0.590 |
| HR, beats/min | 67 ± 13 | 70 ± 10 | 71 ± 17 | 69 ± 10 | 0.485 | 0.942 | 0.725 | 0.256 |
| RR, breaths/min | 18 ± 3 | 16 ± 3 | 17 ± 2 | 15 ± 4 | 0.192 | 0.004* | 0.337 | 0.727 |
| MSNA, bursts/min | 22 ± 14 | 21 ± 10 | 19 ± 13 | 17 ± 13 | 0.942 | 0.666 | 0.365 | 0.924 |
| MSNA, bursts/100 heartbeats | 32 ± 21 | 30 ± 19 | 28 ± 17 | 25 ± 20 | 0.789 | 0.625 | 0.475 | 0.921 |
| SDNN, ms | 72 ± 22 | 71 ± 26 | 65 ± 28 | 68 ± 12 | 0.523 | 0.835 | 0.508 | 0.745 |
| RMSSD, ms | 63 ± 41 | 44 ± 24 | 59 ± 44 | 50 ± 24 | 0.816 | 0.097 | 0.921 | 0.545 |
| CVBRS, ms/mmHg | 11 ± 7 | 14 ± 8 | 14 ± 8 | 15 ± 12 | 0.243 | 0.417 | 0.378 | 0.663 |
| SBRS, bursts·100 beats−1·mmHg−1 | −2.2 ± 1.5 | −1.2 ± 1.2 | −0.8 ± 1.1 | −0.5 ± 4.2 | 0.022* | 0.369 | 0.212 | 0.532 |
Data are means ± SD measured before (pre) and after (post) use of device-guided slow breathing (DGB) or sham device (Sham) daily for 8 wk; n = 12 subjects in DGB group [5 moderate and 7 severe posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD)] and n = 13 subjects in Sham group (7 moderate and 6 severe PTSD). Sixteen subjects have Clinician-Administered PTSD Scale (CAPS) pre (7 DGB and 9 Sham), and 12 subjects have CAPS post (5 DGB and 7 Sham). Eighteen subjects have PTSD Checklist for the military (PCL-M) pre (7 DGB and 11 Sham), and 16 subjects have PCL-M post (6 DGB and 10 Sham). B, black; BMI, body mass index; CVBRS, cardiovagal baroreflex sensitivity; DBP, diastolic arterial pressure; F, female; HR, heart rate; M, male; MSNA, muscle sympathetic nerve activity (n = 12 DGB and n = 11 Sham); RMSSD, root mean square of the successive differences; RR, respiratory rate; SBP, systolic arterial pressure; SBRS, sympathetic baroreflex sensitivity; SDNN, standard deviation of NN intervals; SSRI, selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor; W, white. Condition, pre- and posttrial; Device, DGB or Sham; P value (pre), t test comparison of DGB pretrial vs. Sham pretrial; P value (pre vs. post), repeated measures ANOVA comparison between devices and across trials.
P < 0.05 (two-tailed).