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Eye Tracking, Cortisol, and a Sleep vs. Wake Consolidation Delay: Combining Methods to Uncover an Interactive Effect of Sleep and Cortisol on Memory
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Peri-sleep-onset cortisol levels in children and adolescents with affective disorders

Erika E Forbes1, Douglas E Williamson, Neal D Ryan

  • 1Department of Psychiatry, University of Pittsburgh, PA 15213, USA. forbese@upmc.edu

Biological Psychiatry
|August 23, 2005
PubMed

Insights

Children with anxiety disorders show higher cortisol around sleep onset. Adolescent depression is linked to altered cortisol, influenced by puberty, impacting mood disorders.

Area of Science:

  • Neuroendocrinology
  • Child and Adolescent Psychiatry
  • Sleep Medicine

Background:

  • Hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis dysregulation, indicated by cortisol patterns, is crucial for understanding mood disorders.
  • Altered cortisol secretion around sleep onset is a potential biomarker for pediatric depression and anxiety.
  • Pubertal development may modulate HPA axis activity in youth with affective disorders.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate peri-sleep-onset cortisol levels in children and adolescents with major depressive disorder (MDD) and anxiety disorders.
  • To examine the influence of pubertal maturation on HPA axis activity in relation to these disorders.
  • To compare cortisol secretion patterns between different diagnostic groups and control participants.

Main Methods:

  • Plasma cortisol levels were measured every 20 minutes around sleep onset.
  • Sleep onset was objectively determined using polysomnography.
  • Participants were classified as children or adolescents based on Tanner staging, with 116 in MDD, 32 in anxiety, and 76 controls.

Main Results:

  • Children with anxiety disorders exhibited elevated peri-sleep-onset cortisol compared to children with depression and controls.
  • Adolescents with depression showed marginally higher peri-sleep-onset cortisol than controls.
  • Adolescents with depression had significantly higher peri-sleep-onset cortisol than children with depression.

Conclusions:

  • Both depression and anxiety are associated with altered cortisol secretion patterns around sleep onset in youth.
  • These cortisol changes are demonstrably influenced by pubertal development.
  • Findings highlight the interplay between HPA axis function, affective disorders, and maturation in pediatric populations.
Abstract

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