Victims of rape show increased cortisol responses to trauma reminders: A study in individuals with war- and torture-related PTSD (original) (raw)
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Higher Cortisol Levels Following Exposure to Traumatic Reminders in Abuse-Related PTSD
Neuropsychopharmacology, 2003
Animal studies have found that prior stressful events can result in increased reactivity in the HPA-axis. Baseline function of the HPA-axis has typically been normal or decreased in Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), however. The first purpose of this study was to assess cortisol responsivity to traumatic reminders in women with PTSD related to childhood abuse.
Psychoneuroendocrinology, 2003
Preclinical studies show that animals with a history of chronic stress exposure have increased hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis reactivity following reexposure to stress. Patients with posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) have been found to have normal or decreased function of the HPA axis, however no studies have looked at the HPA response to stress in PTSD. The purpose of this study was to assess cortisol responsivity to a stressful cognitive challenge in patients with PTSD related to childhood abuse. Salivary cortisol levels, as well as heart rate and blood pressure, were measured before and after a stressful cognitive challenge in * Corresponding author. Present address: patients with abuse-related PTSD (N = 23) and healthy comparison subjects (N = 18). PTSD patients had 61% higher group mean cortisol levels in the time period leading up to the cognitive challenge, and 46% higher cortisol levels during the time period of the cognitive challenge, compared to controls. Both PTSD patients and controls had a similar 66-68% increase in cortisol levels from their own baseline with the cognitive challenge. Following the cognitive challenge, cortisol levels fell in both groups and were similar in PTSD and control groups. PTSD patients appeared to have an increased cortisol response in anticipation of a cognitive challenge relative to controls. Although cortisol has been found to be low at baseline, there does not appear to be an impairment in cortisol response to stressors in PTSD. Published by Elsevier Science Ltd.
Psychoneuroendocrinology, 2013
In chronic sexual abuse victims with post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), the hypothalamic pituitary adrenal (HPA) axis can be dysregulated. In single rape victims, PTSD symptoms are hypothesized to function as a chronic stressor leading to similar HPA-axis dysregulation. The objective of the current study was to assess HPA-axis functioning in female adolescents with rape-related PTSD, but no prior sexual trauma, in comparison to non-victimized controls. Salivary cortisol and dehydroepiandrosterone sulfate (DHEAS) were measured in 52 female adolescent rape victims with PTSD and 37 healthy adolescents at 0, 15, 30, 45 and 60 min after awakening, both under basal conditions and after 0.5 mg dexamethasone administration. Compared to age-matched controls, adolescent rape victims with PTSD showed significantly reduced cortisol and DHEAS levels. No group differences for the effect of dexamethasone suppression were found. Both the event of rape and PTSD diagnosis, and not factors such as sleep duration, smoking, education or oral contraceptives, accounted for the neuroendocrine differences between rape victims and controls. The results show evidence for a dysregulated HPA-axis in female adolescent victims of single sexual trauma with PTSD. The finding of hypocortisolism is consistent with endocrine dysfunctioning in chronic sexual abuse victims and may have clinical implications with regard to treatment possibilities.
Frontiers in psychology, 2017
Background: Although depression symptoms are often experienced by individuals who develop posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) following trauma exposure, little is know about the biological correlates associated with PTSD and depression co-morbidity vs. those associated with PTSD symptoms alone. Methods: Here we examined salivary cortisol responses to trauma activation in a sample of 60 survivors of the World Trade Center attacks on September 11, 2001. Participants recalled the escape from the attacks 7 months post 9/11. Salivary cortisol levels were measured before and after their recollection of the trauma. PTSD, depression, and somatic symptoms were also assessed. From the behavioral assessment scales, the participants were grouped into three conditions: those with comorbid PTSD and depressive symptoms, PTSD alone symptoms, or no-pathology. Results: Baseline and cortisol response levels differed between the comorbid, PTSD alone, and no-pathology groups. Individuals endorsing co-m...
Background: Sexual assault is implicated in several adverse psychological and physical health outcomes, including posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and depression. Neurobiological research has shown variations related to the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis, immune alterations, metabolic function, and brain circuitry. Although these mechanisms have been extensively studied, the results have demonstrated different outcomes in PTSD. Methods: We compared the plasma adrenocorticotropin (ACTH) and salivary cortisol levels of fifty-eight women with PTSD developed after sexual assault to those of forty-four female controls with no history of trauma. We also evaluated the psychiatric diagnosis and symptom severity of PTSD and depression. The participants' clinical conditions were associated with their hormonal levels to assess whether symptom severity was related to hormonal imbalance. Results: A large percentage of sexually assaulted women had PTSD and comorbid depression. The ACTH levels were higher in the PTSD group than the control group and increased as PTSD severity increased, considering depressive symptoms, measured by the Beck Depression Inventory (BDI) (p < 0.0001), as well as PTSD symptoms, measured by subscale D of the Clinician-Administered PTSD Scale (CAPS-5) (p = 0.045) and the CAPS-5 total scale (p = 0.026). Cortisol levels measured at 10 pm were higher for the PTSD group than the control group (p = 0.045, p = 0.037, respectively), and the cortisol awakening response showed elevated cortisol levels for the PTSD group. Conclusions: These results show a correlation between symptom severity and HPA axis imbalance in patients with PTSD. Elevated ACTH and an elevated cortisol response in patients with comorbid depressive symptoms were the opposite of the expected response for patients with PTSD only. This association leads to the hypothesis that the neurobiological alterations of PTSD are related to the type of symptoms presented and their severity. These manifestations likely influence the disease course, prognosis and response to treatment. These outcomes highlight the need to discuss particular neurobiological alterations in patients with PTSD developed after sexual assault, mainly those with severe depressive symptoms.
Predictors of Cortisol and 3-Methoxy-4-Hydroxyphenylglycol Responses in the Acute Aftermath of Rape
Biological Psychiatry, 1998
Background: Prospective studies of trauma survivors can provide information about the relationship between rape characteristics and the development of subsequent symptoms. Methods: The present study examined the relationship of prior assault, rape severity, posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptoms following rape, and subsequent PTSD diagnosis, to the acute cortisol and 3-methoxy-4-hydroxyphenylglycol (MHPG) response to this traumatic event in 20 women. Results: Women with a history of prior physical or sexual assault showed a significantly attenuated cortisol response to the acute stress of rape compared to women without such a history. MHPG appeared to be associated with injury-related rape characteristics, and symptoms of active avoidance, but not prior history. PTSD status at the 3-month follow-up was predicted by both a prior history of assault and high injury rape, but was not directly predicted by either cortisol or MHPG levels. MHPG and cortisol were not correlated in the sample as a whole, but were correlated among individuals who did not subsequently develop PTSD (p ϭ .04).
Acute Post-Rape Plasma Cortisol, Alcohol Use, and PTSD Symptom Profile among Recent Rape Victims
Annals of The New York Academy of Sciences, 1997
Our data from a sample of 37 rape victims indicated a significant interaction between a history of assault, rape stress characteristics, and initial post-rape plasma cortisol values.' Rape victims with an assault history had lower levels of post-rape cortisol, regardless of current rape stress characteristics, than did women for whom the recent rape was their first assault. This finding was consistent with previous studies of populations exposed to chronic stressors and may reflect downregulation of the cortisol system in response to chronic exposure to stress.2 Among rape victims without an assault history, cortisol level was significantly higher in association with increased rape severity characteristics. It was hypothesized that this finding may indicate the onset of dysregulation at the time of event exposure among those not previously assaulted. In this study, only a history of assault was a significant predictor of the Structured Clinical Interview for DSM-111-R (SC1D)-defined posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) at interviews conducted an average of 3 months po~t-rape.~
Salivary Cortisol Lower in Posttraumatic Stress Disorder
Journal of Traumatic Stress, 2013
Altered cortisol has been demonstrated to be lower in posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) in most studies. This cross-sectional study evaluated salivary cortisol at waking, 30 minutes after, and bedtime in 51 combat veterans with PTSD compared to 20 veterans without PTSD. It also examined the relationship of cortisol to PTSD symptoms using two classifications: DSM-IV and the more recent four-factor classification proposed for DSM-V. The PTSD group had lower cortisol values than the control group (F(6, 69) = 3.35, p = .006). This significance did not change when adding age, body mass index, smoking, medications affecting cortisol, awakening time, sleep duration, season, depression, perceived stress, service era, combat exposure, and lifetime trauma as covariates. Post-hoc analyses revealed that the PTSD group had lower area under the curve ground and waking, 30min, and bedtime values while the cortisol awakening response and area under the curve increase were not different between groups. The four-factor avoidance PTSD symptom cluster was associated with cortisol but not the other symptom clusters. This study supports the finding that cortisol is lower in people with PTSD.
Salivary cortisol levels and mood vary by lifetime trauma exposure in a sample of healthy women
Journal of Traumatic Stress, 2007
The authors examined the effects of lifetime trauma exposure on salivary cortisol and mood in a sample of women (N = 37) over 25 days before and after a stressful event. The sample excluded posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and major depression and was divided into three groups: (a) no trauma, (b) prior trauma with no peritraumatic symptoms of acute distress, and (c) prior trauma with peritraumatic symptoms. Because results indicated no significant differences between groups one and two, they were combined for analysis. Women reporting prior trauma with symptoms had lower afternoon cortisol levels across time, with sustained negative mood relative to the comparison group. These data suggest the presence of long-term psychophysiological effects of trauma exposure in healthy women.