Halligan Sarah L, Michael Tanja, Wilhelm Frank H, Clark David M, Ehlers Anke
School of Psychology and Clinical Language Sciences, University of Reading, Reading, United Kingdom.
J Trauma Stress. 2006 Oct;19(5):721-34. doi: 10.1002/jts.20167.
The authors investigated whether heart rate (HR) responses to voluntary recall of trauma memories (a) are related to posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), and (b) predict recovery 6 months later. Sixty-two assault survivors completed a recall task modeled on imaginal reliving in the initial weeks postassault. Possible cognitive modulators of HR responsivity were assessed; dissociation, rumination, trauma memory disorganization. Individuals with PTSD showed a reduced HR response to reliving compared to those without PTSD, but reported greater distress. Notably, higher HR response but not self-reported distress during reliving predicted greater symptom reduction at follow-up in participants with PTSD. Engagement in rumination was the only cognitive factor that predicted lower HR response. The data are in contrast to studies using trauma reminders to trigger memories, which have found greater physiological reactivity in PTSD. The authors' observations are consistent with models of PTSD that highlight differences between cued or stimulus-driven retrieval and intentional trauma recall, and with E. B. Foa and M. J. Kozak's (1986) hypothesis that full activation of trauma memories facilitates emotional processing.
作者们研究了对创伤记忆的自愿回忆所产生的心率（HR）反应：（a）是否与创伤后应激障碍（PTSD）相关，以及（b）是否能预测6个月后的恢复情况。62名袭击幸存者完成了一项在袭击后最初几周基于想象重现的回忆任务。对HR反应性可能的认知调节因素进行了评估，包括解离、沉思、创伤记忆紊乱。与没有PTSD的个体相比，患有PTSD的个体在重现时HR反应降低，但报告的痛苦程度更高。值得注意的是，在患有PTSD的参与者中，重现期间较高的HR反应而非自我报告的痛苦程度，预测了随访时更大程度的症状减轻。沉思是唯一预测较低HR反应的认知因素。这些数据与使用创伤提示物来触发记忆的研究形成对比，后者发现在PTSD中生理反应性更强。作者们的观察结果与强调线索或刺激驱动的检索与有意的创伤回忆之间差异的PTSD模型一致，也与E.B.福阿和M.J.科扎克（1986）的假设一致，即创伤记忆的充分激活有助于情绪处理。
