Abstract
In 1958,Friedman & Rosenman first emphasized the specific behaviour pattern called type A in their studies among thepatients with coronary heart disease (CHD) in United States. Since then, many researchers have reported significance of this behavior pattern as one of the important risk factors of CHD. Recently, Williams et al. have also pointed out the type A behaviour pattern having a close relation to high hostility score (Ho score) in MMPI among the coronary patients in United States. This report is to present our study concerning type A and Ho scores among Japanese normal healthy males & coronary patients. Fourty-six male patients with CHD and 319 non-coronary male subjects cared at the Life Planning Center were selected for the study. Type A behaviour pattern was assessed by using the tripple-choice questionnaire form developed by Shinoda that contains 16 selected items specifically related to this behaviour. Hostility was also assessed with the double-choice questionnaire form consisting of 50 items specifically selected from 566 items included in MMPI renewed in 1970. Statisticaly significant correlation (r=0.3959,p<0.001) was found betewen type A behaviour and Ho scores. These scores were entirely independent of age. With regard to comparison of coronary and non-coronary groups, levels of total cholesterol and smoking habit were significantly higher in the former than in the latter. On the contrary, however, no significant differences were found in scores of type A behaviour pattern or Ho, and mean blood pressure. Gradations of the Ho score did not reveal any significant relation to total cholesterol, smoking habit or mean blood pressure. Gradations of physical fitness level also did not show any significant relation to the level of Ho score. There was no significant difference observed on the percent histogram of Ho score distribution betewen cornary and non-coronary groups. Severity of CHD assessed from findings in the coronary arteriogram did no correlate with the level of the Ho score. Comparison among non-coronary Japanese and American males, however, revealed significant difference with regard to the percent rate of subjects with lower Ho score less than 10; 18.9% and 9.3% respectively. Therefore, we conclude that the Ho score seems not to be useful to discriminate coronary from non-coronary subjects at least in the Japaneae male population, althrough there was slight, but significant difference noted in the Ho score level between Japanese and Americal males. This fact may stem from the Japanese males' peculiar personality pattern such as "Edo-orodinal" character (old, traditional colloquial name which is used to denote the men who were born and grown up in Tokyo). According to our previous studies, this character seems to be more related to coronary heat disease.
