Hair cortisol concentrations and daily life stress in 7-year-old children at familial high-risk of schizophrenia or bipolar disorder. The Danish High Risk and Resilience Study - VIA 7.

BACKGROUND: Dysregulation of the HPA-axis, perceived stress and interpersonal trauma are associated with an elevated risk for schizophrenia and bipolar disorder. Being at familial high-risk of these two mental disorders also constitutes an increased risk. In this study, we aimed to investigate hair cortisol concentrations and perceived stress among 7-year-old children at familial high-risk of schizophrenia (FHR-SZ), bipolar disorder (FHR-BP), and population-based controls (controls). METHODS: A total of 515 children (mean age 7.8, SD 0.2) from baseline assessment of the Danish High Risk and Resilience Study - VIA 7 participated in this study. Hair cortisol concentrations were analyzed among 322 children (FHR-SZ; N = 111, FHR-BP; N = 82, controls; N = 129). Perceived stress was assessed with the Daily Life Stressor Scale including 512 children (FHR-SZ; N = 195, FHR-BP; N = 118, controls; N = 199). Interpersonal trauma was measured with face-to-face interviews. RESULTS: Seven-year-old children at FHR-SZ or FHR-BP did not have a higher level of hair cortisol concentrations compared with controls (FHR-SZ: mean: 5.10, 95%CI 3.69-6.52; FHR-BP: mean: 5.01, 95%CI 3.27-6.72; controls: mean: 4.51, 95%CI 3.61-5.40; p = 0.77). Self-reported perceived stress was higher among children at FHR-SZ and FHR-BP compared with controls (FHR-SZ: mean: 12.09, 95%CI 10.99-13.19; FHR-BP: mean: 10.69, 95%CI 9.38-11.99; controls: mean: 8.90, 95%CI 8.13-9.68; p < 0.001). There was no significant association between hair cortisol concentrations and perceived stress (p = 0.84). Exploratory analyses revealed that interpersonal trauma exposure was neither associated with elevated hair cortisol nor perceived stress. CONCLUSIONS: Children at FHR-SZ and FHR-BP did not exhibit higher levels of hair cortisol concentrations at age 7, while both FHR-groups had higher level of self-reported perceived stress compared with controls. Early attention to stress in children at FHR is crucial and these vulnerabilities should be targeted in future interventions studies.

Development of visual attention from age 7 to age 12 in children with familial high risk for schizophrenia or bipolar disorder.

BACKGROUND: Children with familial high risk of schizophrenia (FHR-SZ) or bipolar disorder (FHR-BP) are at increased risk of developing similar disorders and show cognitive deficits during childhood. The aim of this paper is to investigate visual attention and its developmental trajectories in children with FHR-SZ and with FHR-BP to increase our knowledge about potential cognitive endophenotypes of these two disorders. METHODS: We compared the performance of 89 children with FHR-SZ (N = 32), FHR-BP (N = 22), and population-based controls (PBC, N = 35) at age 7 to that at age 12 as well as including 133 12-year-old children with FHR-SZ (N = 50), FHR-BP (N = 43) and PBC (N = 40) to investigate visual attention, as part of the Danish High Risk and Resilience Study. We used the TVA-based whole report paradigm, based on the Bundesen's Theory of Visual Attention (TVA) to investigate visual attention. RESULTS: Children with FHR-SZ that showed deficits in visual processing speed at age 7 improved to a level that was not significantly different from controls at age 12. All children improved over time. We found no attentional deficits in FHR children at age 12. CONCLUSIONS: On visual attention, children with FHR-SZ did not show developmental deficits or lags and, together with children with FHR-BP, they develop similarly to control children between age 7 to age 12. This emphasizes the potential of beneficial neuroplastic changes in cognitive deficits found at younger ages in children with FHR-SZ. It also highlights the importance of identifying and characterizing cognitive developmental trajectories of high-risk children and provides hope that visual attention may develop appropriately in these groups.