Hair cortisone level is associated with PTSD׳s dysphoric arousal symptoms in highly traumatized Chinese females

Abstract

BackgroundCortisone has been proposed as a useful additional biomarker for stress research. However, only very limited studies has investigated alterations of cortisone levels in stress-related mental disorder such as PTSD. The present study investigated the associations between PTSD symptomatology and hair cortisone levels which can reflect cumulative cortisone secretion over prolonged periods of time and is more robust to the influence of situational confounding. MethodsParticipants included 201 females who experienced 2008 Wenchuan earthquake and lost their children during the disaster. PTSD symptoms were assessed with the PTSD Checklist (PCL), and depression symptoms with the Center for epidemiological studies depression scale (CES-D). Hair cortisone levels were quantified by liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometer. ResultsThe results indicated that although hair cortisone secretion could not distinguish traumatized individuals with and without PTSD, it was uniquely linked to dysphoric arousal symptoms, a key aspect of the complex PTSD phenotype LimitationsA sample of females exposed to specific traumatic events was used, and PTSD was assessed using a self-reported measure. ConclusionsThe findings provide preliminary evidence supporting the critical role of long-term cortisone changes in the development and maintenance of PTSD symptoms, and add to extant knowledge on the neuroendocrinological underpinnings of posttraumatic psychopathology.