Salivary Cortisol for Assessment of Hypothalamic-Pituitary-Adrenal Axis Function

There is no author summary for this article yet. Authors can add summaries to their articles on ScienceOpen to make them more accessible to a non-specialist audience.

Abstract

Objective: Cortisol is an important hormone/steroid in the regulation of intermediate metabolism and stress. It exists in free (unbound) and protein-bound forms in serum but only in a free form in saliva. The free form is the biologically active one. There is an advanced biofeedback system regulating the cortisol secretion/concentration by the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis. Methods: There are many different methods to collect saliva, either directly from the mouth as an expectorate or indirectly by using swabs, capillary tubes or paper foams. The swab may be cotton-based, synthetic, with or without a plastic sheath. There are different methods for analysis – immunological, radioisotopic, mass fragmentographic and chromatographic. Results: The diurnal variation in salivary cortisol concentrations in healthy school-aged boys and girls are described and show dependence to different degrees of age and sex. Conclusion: Sampling for salivary cortisol determination is a sensitive, specific and pain-free procedure and it is therefore very useful for following healthy and sick children before, during and after pharmacological interventions. Different conditions as time for sampling, interaction with other endogenous and exogenous steroids, and physical and psychological activity interact with the salivary cortisol concentration.

Related collections

Most cited references 38

Record: found
Abstract: not found
Article: not found

Free Cortisol Levels after Awakening: A Reliable Biological Marker for the Assessment of Adrenocortical Activity

K. von Auer, J.C. Pruessner, O.T. Wolf … (1997)

0 comments Cited 122 times – based on 0 reviews      Review now

Bookmark

Record: found
Abstract: found
Article: not found

Blood hormones as markers of training stress and overtraining.

W Kindermann, A Urhausen, H Gabriel (1995)

An imbalance between the overall strain experienced during exercise training and the athlete's tolerance of such effort may induce overreaching or overtraining syndrome. Overtraining syndrome is characterised by diminished sport-specific physical performance, accelerated fatiguability and subjective symptoms of stress. Overtraining is feared by athletes yet there is a lack of objective parameters suitable for its diagnosis and prevention. In addition to the determination of substrates (e.g. lactate, ammonia and urea) and enzymes (e.g. creatine kinase), the possibilities for monitoring of training by measuring hormonal levels in blood are currently being investigated. Endogenous hormones are essential for physiological reactions and adaptations during physical work and influence the recovery phase after exercise by modulating anabolic and catabolic processes. Testosterone and cortisol are playing a significant role in metabolism of protein as well as carbohydrate metabolism. Both are competitive agonists at the receptor level of muscular cells. The testosterone/cortisol ratio is used as an indication of the anabolic/catabolic balance. This ratio decreases in relation to the intensity and duration of physical exercise, as well as during periods of intense training or repetitive competition, and can be reversed by regenerative measures. Correlations have been noted with the training-induced changes of strength. However, it seems more likely that the testosterone/cortisol ratio indicates the actual physiological strain in training, rather than overtraining syndrome. The sympatho-adrenergic system might be involved in the pathogenesis of overtraining. Overtraining appears as a disturbed autonomic regulation, which in its parasympathicotonic form shows a diminished maximal secretion of catecholamines, combined with an impaired full mobilisation of anaerobic lactic reserves. This is supposed to lead to decreased maximal blood lactate levels and maximal performance. Free plasma adrenaline (epinephrine) and noradrenaline (norepinephrine) may provide additional information for the monitoring of endurance training. While prolonged aerobic exercise conducted at intensities below the individual anaerobic threshold lead to a moderate rise of sympathetic activity, workloads exceeding this threshold are characterised by a disproportionate increase in the levels of catecholamines. In addition, psychological stress during competitive events is characterised by a higher catecholamines to lactate ratio in comparison with training exercise sessions. Thus, the frequency of training sessions with higher anaerobic lactic demands or of competition, should be carefully limited in order to prevent overtraining syndrome. In the state of overtraining syndrome and overreaching, respectively, an intraindividually decreased maximum rise of pituitary hormones (corticotrophin, growth hormone), cortisol and insulin has been found after a standardised exhaustive exercise test performed with an intensity of 10% above the individual anaerobic threshold.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 400 WORDS)

0 comments Cited 92 times – based on 0 reviews      Review now

Bookmark

Record: found
Abstract: found
Article: not found

Use of salivary biomarkers in biobehavioral research: cotton-based sample collection methods can interfere with salivary immunoassay results.

E. Shirtcliff (2001)

In a series of studies, we evaluated the susceptibility of immunoassays for saliva biomarkers to interference effects caused by cotton materials used to absorb saliva during sample collection. Salivary assay results for testosterone, DHEA, progesterone, and estradiol are artificially high, and for sIgA artificially low, when samples are collected using cotton absorbent materials. In contrast, results for salivary cortisol, DHEA-S, and cotinine are not affected by the use of cotton collection methods. The order of individual results from samples collected using cotton versus no-cotton methods for certain markers is not conserved, suggesting that for some biomarkers this collection method can be a significant source of unsystematic error. It was shown, using DHEA as an example, that the cotton interference effect is of sufficient magnitude to attenuate the association between serum and saliva levels. Awareness of this issue is critical to ensure measurement validity in future studies and analyses of archived samples collected using cotton materials.

0 comments Cited 70 times – based on 0 reviews      Review now

Bookmark

All references

Author and article information

Journal

Journal ID (publisher-id): NIM

Journal ID (nlm-ta): Neuroimmunomodulation

Journal ID (doi): 10.1159/issn.1021-7401

Title: Neuroimmunomodulation

Publisher: S. Karger AG

ISBN: 978-3-8055-9200-0

ISBN: 978-3-8055-9201-7

ISSN (Print): 1021-7401

ISSN (Electronic): 1423-0216

Publication date Subscription-year: 2009

Publication date (Print): June 2009

Publication date (Electronic): 29 June 2009

Volume: 16

Issue: 5

Pages: 284-289

Affiliations

Department of Pediatrics, Central Hospital, Karlstad, Sweden

Article

Publisher ID: 216186 Other ID: Neuroimmunomodulation 2009;16:284–289

DOI: 10.1159/000216186

PubMed ID: 19571589

SO-VID: ebe7850d-f554-4b6d-8a19-eac1a79028dc

License:

Copyright: All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be translated into other languages, reproduced or utilized in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, microcopying, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher. Drug Dosage: The authors and the publisher have exerted every effort to ensure that drug selection and dosage set forth in this text are in accord with current recommendations and practice at the time of publication. However, in view of ongoing research, changes in government regulations, and the constant flow of information relating to drug therapy and drug reactions, the reader is urged to check the package insert for each drug for any changes in indications and dosage and for added warnings and precautions. This is particularly important when the recommended agent is a new and/or infrequently employed drug. Disclaimer: The statements, opinions and data contained in this publication are solely those of the individual authors and contributors and not of the publishers and the editor(s). The appearance of advertisements or/and product references in the publication is not a warranty, endorsement, or approval of the products or services advertised or of their effectiveness, quality or safety. The publisher and the editor(s) disclaim responsibility for any injury to persons or property resulting from any ideas, methods, instructions or products referred to in the content or advertisements.

History

Page count

Figures: 2, Tables: 1, References: 59, Pages: 6

Comments

Comment on this article

scite_

Cited by 25

See all cited by

Most referenced authors 411

See all reference authors

- Version 1

Salivary Cortisol for Assessment of Hypothalamic-Pituitary-Adrenal Axis Function

Read this article at

Abstract

Related collections

Karger: Endocrinology

Most cited references 38

Free Cortisol Levels after Awakening: A Reliable Biological Marker for the Assessment of Adrenocortical Activity

Blood hormones as markers of training stress and overtraining.

Use of salivary biomarkers in biobehavioral research: cotton-based sample collection methods can interfere with salivary immunoassay results.

Author and article information

Journal

Affiliations

Article

History

Page count

Categories

Comments

Comment on this article

Similar content 282

Cited by 25

Most referenced authors 411