Somatic correlates of post-traumatic stress disorder

The article presents the results of a content analysis of modern foreign studies aimed at identifying somatic correlates of post-traumatic stress disorder. It is noted that today in the scientific literature on this issue, the description of the mechanisms of comorbidity of PTSD and somatic dysfunctions is largely contradictory and does not clarify the causal relationships in the formation of PTSD and somatic manifestations. It is shown that PTSD is associated with various psychosomatic and somatic symptoms in the vast majority of cases. The results of foreign studies indicate that PTSD is accompanied by a large and diverse set of somatic and psychosomatic disorders of various nosologies. The most commonly described relationships are those between PTSD and cardiovascular diseases, neurological disorders and autonomic dysfunctions. It remains unclear whether there is a hereditary predisposition to PTSD and whether PTSD is a trigger for the development of any somatic pathological manifestations. At the same time, the data of the presented studies suggest that: PTSD is a systemic psychosomatic disorder; PTSD may be a risk factor for the development of cardiovascular and other somatic diseases; somatic symptoms in PTSD are more pronounced in the presence of depression and sleep disorders; premorbid features that determine the specificity of the somatic response in PTSD may be neurobiological and physiological features, in particular, of the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal system.