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Cortisol Rhythms (cortisol + rhythm)

Distribution by Scientific Domains

Medical Sciences	60%

Selected Abstracts

The Differential Impacts of Early Physical and Sexual Abuse and Internalizing Problems on Daytime Cortisol Rhythm in School-Aged Children

CHILD DEVELOPMENT, Issue 1 2010
Dante Cicchetti
The impact of early physical and sexual abuse (EPA/SA) occurring in the first 5 years of life was investigated in relation to depressive and internalizing symptomatology and diurnal cortisol regulation. In a summer camp context, school-aged maltreated (n = 265) and nonmaltreated (n = 288) children provided morning and late afternoon saliva samples on 5 consecutive days. Child self-report and adult observer reports of child internalizing and depressive symptoms were obtained. Children experiencing EPA/SA and high depressive or internalizing symptoms uniquely exhibited an attenuated diurnal decrease in cortisol, indicative of neuroendocrine dysregulation. These results were specific to EPA/SA rather than later onset physical or sexual abuse or early occurring neglect or emotional maltreatment. [source]

An Exploration of the Relationship Between Depressive Symptoms and Cortisol Rhythms in Colorado Ranchers

THE JOURNAL OF RURAL HEALTH, Issue 1 2009
Emily Schulze MA
ABSTRACT:,Context: Although the effects of stress on health have been studied in numerous urban-dwelling populations, fewer studies have addressed these effects in rural populations, such as farmers and ranchers. Purpose: The present study focuses on seasonal levels of depressed affect and perceived stress in Western Colorado ranchers, and how those phenomena related to their levels of cortisol. Methods: Twenty-one (21) ranchers, who were permittees on the Colorado Grand Mesa, completed the study. Participants identified 2-week time periods during the year representing relative high, medium, and low stress. During each period, participants took saliva samples, rated stress levels, and completed a daily health diary. In addition, the Beck Depression Inventory (BDI-II), the perceived stress scale (PSS), and a life events scale (LES) were administered. Results: Results showed a strong relationship between BDI-II and PSS scores (r = 0.748, P < .01). The decreased daytime cortisol decline supports the notion that the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis negative feedback loop is disrupted in chronic stress and depression, thus resulting in chronically elevated cortisol levels. Conclusion: This study supports the relationship between stress, depression, and HPA dysregulation in ranchers. [source]

Diurnal cycle in salivary cortisol levels in common marmosets

DEVELOPMENTAL PSYCHOBIOLOGY, Issue 3 2004
Nicola Cross
Abstract A noninvasive method of saliva sampling was used to assess the diurnal cortisol rhythm from 0900 to 1700 hr in the common marmoset (Callithrix jacchus). The levels of cortisol were highest in the morning and declined significantly over the day. Individual marmosets varied in the magnitude of the cycle, and the greatest individual variability occurred in the morning levels. The decrease in cortisol levels was more rapid after than before the midday feeding period in subordinate marmosets (aged 53,63 months) compared to dominant marmosets (aged 79,80 months), and overall, the levels of cortisol were higher in the subordinate marmosets. We found no effect of sex on cortisol levels across the cycle. © 2004 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Dev Psychobiol 45: 134-139, 2004. [source]

The relationship between melatonin and cortisol rhythms: clinical implications of melatonin therapy

DRUG DEVELOPMENT RESEARCH, Issue 3 2005
N. Zisapel
Abstract Disturbances in circadian rhythm have been linked to chronic diseases such as insomnia, hypertension, diabetes, and depression. Here we review recent studies on the age-related changes in cortisol and melatonin rhythms and then present descriptive statistics on our preliminary findings on the rectification of the cortisol rhythms by melatonin therapy in elderly patients with insomnia. In adults, the melatonin onset typically occurs during low cortisol secretion. Administration of exogenous melatonin around dusk will shift the phase of the human circadian clock to earlier hours (advance phase shift) leading to phase advances in circadian rhythms (e.g., sleep, endogenous melatonin, cortisol). With aging, the production of melatonin declines and is shifted to later hours while the production of cortisol increases and its peak occurs earlier in the night. In a randomized placebo-controlled crossover study with 8 patients with insomnia aged 55 years and older, a group characterized by low and delayed melatonin production, administration of prolonged-release melatonin in the evening was able to rectify the early onset cortisol production. This delay in nocturnal cortisol onset may explain in part the improvement in sleep quality in elderly patients with insomnia, in schizophrenics, and in depressed patients. Support of circadian pacemaker function by melatonin may provide a new strategy in the treatment of disorders related to impairments in the internal temporal order. The clinical benefit from a decrease in cortisol during the early part of the night may lie beyond the improvement of sleep into a better control of blood pressure, metabolism, and mood. Drug Dev. Res. 65:119,125, 2005. © 2005 Wiley-Liss, Inc. [source]