Are psychosocial factors related to blood pressure levels and the pathogenesis of hypertension?
Psychosocial factors such as depression and hostility do not appear to be important in the pathogenesis of hypertension, though hypertension treatment may be associated with increased psychosomatic symptoms.
Blood pressure levels as recorded in a community-wide screening programme were compared with findings in an earlier mental health study for persons who participated in both programmes. Blood pressure was not related to previously ascertained psychosocial characteristics among persons who were not under treatment for hypertension, suggesting that depression, hostility, psychosomatic reactions to stress, or the felt need for help with emotional problems were not important in the pathogenesis of hypertension. Treatment for hypertension, however, was associated with an excess of psychosomatic symptoms, a factor which needs to be taken into account in assessing the benefits of treatment.
Goldberg et al. (Thu,) studied this question.