Citation

Kaess M, Hille M, Parzer P, Maser-Gluth C, Resch F, Brunner R. Psychoneuroendocrinology 2012; 37(1): 157-161.

Affiliation

Section for Disorders of Personality Development, Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Centre of Psychosocial Medicine, University of Heidelberg, Blumenstrasse 8, 69115 Heidelberg, Germany.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2012, Elsevier Publishing)

DOI

10.1016/j.psyneuen.2011.05.009

PMID

21676550

Abstract

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the neuroendocrinological stress response to acute psychosocial stress in a clinical sample of female adolescents engaging in nonsuicidal self-injury (NSSI). METHODS: The Trier Social Stress Test (TSST), a standardized psychosocial stress protocol, was performed in 14 female patients who engaged in NSSI and 14 healthy control subjects. NSSI was assessed by the Functional Assessment of Self-Mutilation (FASM). Salivary cortisol, heart rate, and affective states, assessed by the Positive and Negative Affect Schedule (PANAS), were measured during the TSST. RESULTS: We found an attenuated cortisol response to acute psychosocial stress in female adolescents with NSSI, whereas no group differences were observed in heart rate and emotional response to the TSST. CONCLUSIONS: These findings indicate that the HPA axis is hyporesponsive in adolescents with NSSI. Therefore, reduced secretion of cortisol could play a role in promoting vulnerability of these individuals to acute stress and maladaptive stress responses.

Language: en