Title
Stress and hair cortisol concentrations from preconception to the third trimester
Date Issued
02 January 2019
Access level
open access
Resource Type
journal article
Author(s)
Orta O.R.
Tworoger S.S.
Terry K.L.
Coull B.A.
Gelaye B.
Kirschbaum C.
Williams M.A.
Publisher(s)
Taylor and Francis Ltd
Abstract
Stress is an important and modifiable determinant of health, and its association with hair cortisol concentrations (HCC) during pregnancy remains unclear. We selected a random sample of 97 participants from a cohort of pregnant participants attending prenatal clinics in Lima, Peru. Each provided a hair sample at enrollment (mean gestational age = 13.1 weeks) and again at full-term delivery. Hair samples were segmented to reflect HCC in preconception and each trimester. At enrollment, measures of stress included: difficulty accessing basic goods, educational attainment, exposure to violence, fair or poor general health, perceived stress, and symptoms of depression, general anxiety, and post-traumatic stress disorder. Linear mixed models evaluated the association between each stress measure and absolute and relative changes in HCC. Pearson correlation coefficients (r) assessed correlations between HCC and continuous stress scores. Educational attainment of ≤12 years was associated with higher HCC in preconception and the 1st trimester, and general anxiety with lower preconception HCC. When modeling HCC patterns across the 4 hair segments, an educational attainment of ≤12 years was associated with higher HCC, high perceived stress with lower HCC, and general anxiety with steeper increases in HCC (group by time p value =.02). Only preconception HCC and GAD scores correlated (r = −0.22, p =.04). We observed few associations between stress and HCC. However, those that were seen were generally restricted to the preconception and 1st trimester. Further investigations into the association between stress and changes in HCC across pregnancy are warranted, and should include the preconception where possible.
Start page
60
End page
69
Volume
22
Issue
1
Language
English
OCDE Knowledge area
Pediatría
Obstetricia, Ginecología
Scopus EID
2-s2.0-85059083668
PubMed ID
Source
Stress
ISSN of the container
10253890
Sponsor(s)
This research was supported by awards from the National Institutes of Health (NIH (R01-HD-059835 and T37-MD00144). Olivia R. Orta was supported by The National Institute of Health Training Grant in Psychiatric Epidemiology (T32-MH-017119). The NIH had no further role in the study design; in the collection, analysis, and interpretation of data; in the writing of the report; and in the decision to submit the paper for publication The authors are indebted to the participants of the PrOMIS study for their cooperation. They are also grateful to Juliane Grasz, Elena Sanchez, and the dedicated staff members of Asociacion Civil Proyectos en Salud (PROESA), Peru and Instituto Nacional Materno Perinatal, Peru for their expert technical assistance with this research.
Sources of information:
Directorio de Producción Científica
Scopus