TY - JOUR
T1 - Decreased cortisol awakening response after early loss experience
AU - Meinlschmidt, Gunther
AU - Heim, Christine
N1 - Funding Information:
We thank the students of the University of Trier who collected the data as part of a research practice seminar. This work was supported by a research credit of the University of Trier and by a grant of the Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (FOR 255 Project F) to CH, as well as a stipend of the Cusanuswerk to GM.
PY - 2005/7
Y1 - 2005/7
N2 - Early loss experience (ELE) due to death or separation is a major risk factor for the development of several psychiatric and physical disorders in adulthood. Few studies have focused on the effects of ELE on neuroendocrine systems, which might mediate this risk in part. The goal of this study was to evaluate salivary cortisol responses to awakening in individuals with and without ELE. A total of 95 healthy college students (29 men, 66 women) completed a questionnaire on ELE and were instructed to collect saliva immediately after awakening and 30 min later. Fifty-five of the 95 subjects reported having experienced the separation or divorce of their parents and/or the death of a close relative before the age of 14 years. Subjects with such ELE exhibited decreased salivary cortisol responses to awakening compared to subjects without ELE (net increase: 4.78 nmol/l versus 9.83 nmol/l; t93=2.88, p=0.005). The effect was most pronounced in individuals who experienced multiple types of ELE, while there were no sex differences. In conclusion, ELE appears to be associated with decreased salivary cortisol responses to awakening. Low cortisol awakening responses are believed to reflect altered dynamics of the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis, possibly conferring risk for certain stress-related disorders.
AB - Early loss experience (ELE) due to death or separation is a major risk factor for the development of several psychiatric and physical disorders in adulthood. Few studies have focused on the effects of ELE on neuroendocrine systems, which might mediate this risk in part. The goal of this study was to evaluate salivary cortisol responses to awakening in individuals with and without ELE. A total of 95 healthy college students (29 men, 66 women) completed a questionnaire on ELE and were instructed to collect saliva immediately after awakening and 30 min later. Fifty-five of the 95 subjects reported having experienced the separation or divorce of their parents and/or the death of a close relative before the age of 14 years. Subjects with such ELE exhibited decreased salivary cortisol responses to awakening compared to subjects without ELE (net increase: 4.78 nmol/l versus 9.83 nmol/l; t93=2.88, p=0.005). The effect was most pronounced in individuals who experienced multiple types of ELE, while there were no sex differences. In conclusion, ELE appears to be associated with decreased salivary cortisol responses to awakening. Low cortisol awakening responses are believed to reflect altered dynamics of the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis, possibly conferring risk for certain stress-related disorders.
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U2 - 10.1016/j.psyneuen.2005.01.006
DO - 10.1016/j.psyneuen.2005.01.006
M3 - Article
C2 - 15808926
AN - SCOPUS:16244381150
SN - 0306-4530
VL - 30
SP - 568
EP - 576
JO - Psychoneuroendocrinology
JF - Psychoneuroendocrinology
IS - 6
ER -