Personality characteristics influencing determinacy of day and night blood pressure and heart rate.

The evidence of emotional impacts on day and night blood pressure (BP), heart rate (HR) and non-dipping of BP remains fragmentary. Personality traits previously tested by self-reports as determinants of office, screening or mean daytime BP produced mixed results. Therefore, we hypothesized that some traits are acting together as modifiers of 24-h and day/night ambulatory BP and HR. A population sample of healthy 47-54 year-old men, n = 85, unaware of their BP status, was evaluated. In multiple regression, 25% of the 24-h systolic BP (SBP) variation was explained by independent augmenting predictors Trait Anger-Anger Expression Styles, Large and Lasting Emotions, and by an attenuating predictor Anxiety. Only Verbal Aggression increased night-time SBP much more than daytime SBP and diminished day-night dipping of SBP. Strong Large/Lasting Emotions and Indirect Aggression increased daytime SBP only. Day and night HR increased with a high Suspicious Hostility (7.4% of variation), in particular with items Distrust/Vulnerability (11.5% of variation). In conclusion, mean levels of HR and BP during a 24-h period are slightly modified by particular personality traits. Some traits appear to affect either daytime or night-time periods more. Day to night carry-over effects on SBP may occur.