Depression, cortisol and somatoform dissociative symtoms

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Authors	BOB Petr FREYBERGH PF JAŠOVÁ D. ŠUSTA M. PAVLAT J. ZIMA T. BENAKOVÁ H. BIZIK G. SVĚTLÁK Miroslav VEVERA J. MIKLOŠKO J. HÁJEK K. RABOCH J.
Year of publication	2008
Type	Article in Periodical
Magazine / Source	NEUROENDOCRINOLOGY LETTERS
MU Faculty or unit	Faculty of Medicine
Citation
Field	Neurology, neurosurgery, neurosciences
Keywords	Depression cortisol and somatoform dissociative symtoms
Description	OBJECTIVE: According to recent findings neuroendocrine response related to dissociative symptoms is related to dysregulation of the hypothalamus-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis but HPA axis functioning as related to dissociation is only partially understood. METHOD: With the aim to test the relationship between basal serum cortisol and dissociative symptoms measured as somatoform and psychic dissociation we performed clinical testing and biochemical analysis in 30 inpatients with diagnosis of unipolar depression (mean age 41.46, SD=13.68). RESULTS: The results show that cortisol as an index of HPA axis functioning manifests significant relationship to somatoform dissociative symptoms (r=-0.40; p=0.014). CONCLUSIONS: The result indicates relationship between HPA-axis reactivity and somatoform dissociative symptoms in unipolar depressive patients and suggests that somatoform dissociation presents a defense mechanism related to a passive coping response.
Related projects:	The internal organisation and neurobiological mechanisms of functional CNS systems under normal and pathological conditions. Centrum pro neuropsychiatrická studia traumatického stresu - NEURPSYCHTS