Résumé
Background: suicide attempters (SA) have a particular sensitivity to social stress via the induction of strong psychological pain. The literature suggests that stress response which can be influenced by impulsiveness is central to suicidal vulnerability, particularly the emotional response and the autonomic nervous system response, which can be studied by analyzing cardiovascular (CV) parameters. However, the emotional response remains little studied, and to our knowledge there are no data analyzing the effect of impulsivity on the CV response to stress.Objectives: the aim of our study was to investigate CV and emotional responses to social stress in SA by taking into account impulsivity trait.Methods: 30 adult women with a history of depression and SA and 24 with a history of depression without SA were included. They were placed in a social stress situation using the virtual Trier Social Stress Test (v-TSST). CV response was measured by ICG throughout v-TSST, and emotional response by questionnaires at different times. Trait impulsivity was evaluated using BIS-10.Results: SA had a significant pre-ejection period (PEP) decrease before v-TSST, suggesting an anticipatory reaction (p= .043), but significant results were not consistent when adjusting for covariates. A significant trend was found in HF-HRV (high frequency heart rate variability) and LF-HRV (low frequency heart rate variability): patients with low impulsiveness and rapid recovery of these parameters were more at risk to be SA. Patients with high impulsiveness and greater negative mood reactivity were more at risk to be SA (p= .042). Patients with low impulsiveness and slower anxiety recovery were more at risk to be SA (p= .049).Conclusion: CV parameters may represent biomarkers of suicidal behavior. The role of impulsivity in vulnerability to stress, reflected in altered CV and emotional responses in these subjects, would help identify at-risk subjects.