Key result
Acute exercise prior to a 35% CO2 challenge reduced reported panic symptoms compared to minimal activity on the DSM-IV Panic Symptom List, with no difference on the Visual Analogue Anxiety Scale.
Why the study?
Does acute exercise reduce panic symptoms in healthy volunteers exposed to a 35% CO2 challenge?
RCT (n=20)
randomized
Does acute exercise reduce panic symptoms in healthy volunteers exposed to a 35% CO2 challenge?
Acute exercise leading to high lactate levels appears to have an inhibitory effect on panic symptoms induced by a 35% CO2 challenge in healthy volunteers.
Acute exercise attenuated CO2-induced panic symptoms in healthy volunteers; extends experimental evidence but leaves clinical translation to panic disorder untested.
OBJECTIVE: To test the possible antipanic effects of acute exercise in healthy volunteers exposed to an inhalation of 35% CO2 challenge. METHOD: Twenty healthy subjects in a randomized separate group design, performed exercise in a bicycle ergometer reaching >6 mm of blood lactate and a control condition of minimal activity in the same fashion with no lactate elevation. Immediately afterwards an inhalation of a vital capacity using a mixture of 35% CO2/65% O2 through a mask was given on both conditions. RESULTS: Subjects under the exercise condition reported less panic symptoms than controls after a CO2 challenge on the diagnostic statistical manual-IV (DSM-IV) Panic Symptom List but no difference on the Visual Analogue Anxiety Scale. CONCLUSION: Subjects under the exertion condition had lactate levels comparable with those of lactate infusions but an inhibitory rather than accumulative effect was seen when combined with a CO2 challenge.
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Esquivel et al. (2002) conducted an RCT in Healthy volunteers (n=20). Acute exercise vs. Minimal activity with no lactate elevation was evaluated on Panic symptoms on the DSM-IV Panic Symptom List. Acute exercise prior to a 35% CO2 challenge reduced reported panic symptoms compared to minimal activity on the DSM-IV Panic Symptom List, with no difference on the Visual Analogue Anxiety Scale.
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