Anxiogenic Effects of Caffeine in Patients With Anxiety Disorders

ADORA2A Gene Variation, Caffeine, and Emotional Processing: A Multi-level Interaction on Startle Reflex

“…Consistently, caffeine has been shown to act as a potent anxiogenic challenge substance in the rodent model (eg, Bhattacharya et al, 1997) as well as in patients with anxiety disorders, first-degree relatives of patients with panic disorders, and healthy subjects (Boulenger et al, 1984;Bruce et al, 1992;Charney et al, 1985;Lee et al, 1998;Nardi et al, 2007Nardi et al, , 2008Nardi et al, , 2009Nickell and Uhde, 1994). Also, an increase in acoustic startle reflex amplitude and a delayed habituation of acoustic startle blink amplitude as physiological correlates of anxiety have been observed after caffeine administration (Andrews et al, 1998;Blumenthal et al, 2005;Schicatano and Blumenthal, 1995).…”

Effects of caffeine on cognitive and autonomic measures in heavy and light caffeine consumers

“…Similar results were reported by Zahn and Rapoport (1987), who observed that caffeine increased electrodermal activity in both heavy and light users alike. Skin conductance level has also been consistently shown to increase following caffeine Bruce et al, 1992;Davidson & Smith, 1991).…”

“…Caffeine levels as low as those typically present in one cup of coffee have been shown to increase autonomic nervous system activity, resulting in a number of behavioural and physiological changes (Quinlan, Lane, & Aspinall, 1997). The latter include cerebral vasoconstriction (Mathew & Wilson, 1985), decreases in peripheral skin temperature (Bruce, Scott, Lader, & Marks, 1986;Quinlan et al, 1997), and increases in systolic blood pressure (Cameron, Modell, & Hariharan, 1990), startle eyeblink responses (Andrew~, Blumenthal, & Flaten, 1998), electroencephalogram (EEG) signs of arousal Bruce, Scott, Shine & Lader, 1992;Newman, Stein, Trettau, Coppola, & Uhde, 1992), and tonic skin conductance levels (SCL) as well as SCR amplitude and frequency Davidson & Smith, 1991;Zahn & Rapoport, 1987). Given these previous findings, nonselective psychophysiological effects of caffeine were anticipated in the present study in line with the drug's hypothesised nonspecific enhancement of autonomic arousal.…”

The Effects of Caffeine on the Brain: A Review

“…These increases in anxiety in patients with generalized anxiety disorder and panic disorder do appear to be dose related and have been validated in placebo controlled research (Bruce, Scott, Shine, & Lader, 1992), although expectancy that a placebo is caffeine does have an impact as well (e.g., Jones, Griffiths, Herning, & Cadet, 2000;Mikalsen, Bertelsen, & Flaten, 2001). Some literature also suggests that patients with generalized anxiety disorder (Bruce et al, 1992) and panic disorder are more sensitive to and also tend to consume less caffeine than normal individuals (Boulenger et al, 1984;Christensen, Bourgeois, & Cockroft, 1993;Lee, Flegel, Greden, & Cameron, 1988).…”

“…Newman, Stein, Trettau, Coppola, and Uhde (1992) reported that delta was increased in normal subjects and in panic disorder patients following administration or oral caffeine. Bruce et al (1992) discovered that in patients with generalized anxiety disorder or panic disorder (compared to control subjects), caffeine produced significantly less of a decrease in alpha activity and a greater decrease in N1-P2 auditory evoked potential amplitude. Hasenfratz and Battig (1994) found that increasing doses not only increased anxiety and wakefulness in normal coffee drinkers, but that it increased the dominant beta frequency and with a high dose, increased the dominant alpha frequency significantly above placebo.…”