AI Summary & Key Takeaways
AI InsightThis result indicates that thiol/disulfide homeostasis canbe significant in the pathophysiology of oxidative stress in these patients.
📌 3 Key Takeaways
Abstract
Objective: There are few studies on oxidative stress in patients with post-traumatic stress disorder(PTSD). The thiol/disulfide homeostasis is a new marker of oxidative stress. This study aimed to examinethe oxidative DNA damage and thiol/disulfide homeostasis after 6 months in patients who developedPTSD after an avalanche disaster and to compare them with healthy controls. Methods: A total of 31 patients who developed PTSD after 2 consecutive avalanche disasters that oc curred in Van on February 4 and 5, 2020, resulting in 42 deaths, and 33 healthy volunteers were includ ed in the study. The patients were followed up by a psychiatrist within the framework of psychosocialintervention during their admission to Yüzüncü Yil University Medical Faculty Emergency Service. Thepatients monitored for a long time were diagnosed according to DSM-5 diagnostic criteria. The clinicalfollow-up was evaluated with the post-traumatic stress disorder self-assessment (PTSD-KD) and the im pact of events scale. To determine oxidative DNA damage, 8-hydroxy-2-deoxyguanosine (8-OHdG) anddeoxyguanosine (dG) levels were determined by isolating leukocyte DNA. Oxidative DNA damage wasgiven as a ratio of 8-OHdG/106dG. Total thiol/native thiol levels were also determined. Disulfide levelswere calculated by subtracting native thiol results from the total thiol results and dividing them by 2. Results: It was determined that total thiol and native thiol levels in patients with PTSD were statisticallysignificantly lower than in the healthy control group (P = .001), and the disulfide levels were higher inthe PTSD group compared with that in the healthy control group (P = .001). In addition, 8-OHdG, anindicator of DNA damage, was found to be significantly lower in the control group than in the patientgroup (P = .001). Conclusion: In our study, thiol/disulfide homeostasis was observed to shift toward disulfide in patientswith PTSD when compared with healthy controls. The level of 8-OHdG, the indicator of DNA damage,was observed to increase in patients with PTSD. This result indicates that thiol/disulfide homeostasis canbe significant in the pathophysiology of oxidative stress in these patients.