Measurement of cortisol and testosterone in hair of obese and non-obese human subjects.

OBJECTIVE: Hair analysis has been demonstrated to accurately reflect exposure to drug abuse, environmental toxins and exogenous hormones. We tested the feasibility of measuring cortisol and testosterone in hair of healthy and obese subjects. MEASUREMENTS: A modified immunoassay (ELISA) originally developed for saliva was used. Hair, urine and blood samples were collected from young non-obese and obese patients. Perceived stress (PSS) was measured using a validated questionnaire. RESULTS: There was no difference in PSS between non-obese and obese subjects. Hair cortisol levels were significantly correlated with weight (r = 0.27, p < 0.05) and systolic blood pressure (r = 0.28, p < 0.05), while the correlation with BMI did not reach statistical significance (p = 0.063). Hair cortisol levels did not correlate with age or urinary cortisol. There was a negative correlation between hair testosterone and age (r = -0.47, p < 0.05) and BMI (r = -0.40, p < 0.05). The correlation between hair testosterone and free androgen index (FAI) did not reach statistical significance (p = 0.098). The ratio of hair cortisol over hair testosterone (C/T) was higher in the obese group than in the young non-obese group. The C/T ratio correlated positively with age (r = 0.56, p < 0.01), waist circumference (r = 0.63, p < 0.01) and BMI (r = 0.62, p < 0.01), while the correlation between C/T ratio and FAI did not reach statistical significance. CONCLUSION: Hair cortisol levels increase, while hair testosterone levels decrease with obesity. The hair C/T ratio was significantly correlated with age, BMI and waist circumference better than hair cortisol or testosterone alone. As hair collection is non-invasive and is not influenced by moment-to-moment variations, the measurement of hormones in hair is a useful tool in research and possibly clinical practice.

Elevated content of cortisol in hair of patients with severe chronic pain: a novel biomarker for stress.

Hair analysis has been used to reflect long-term systemic exposure to exogenous drugs and toxins. Several studies have demonstrated the feasibility of measuring endogenous steroid hormones, e.g. cortisol, in hair. Recently, a study in macaques showed a significant increase in hair cortisol levels induced by stress. We explored whether hair cortisol levels may be used as a biomarker for long-term stress in humans. Patients with severe chronic pain, aged 18 years or older, receiving opioid treatment for at least one year were recruited. Controls were non-obese (body mass index, BMI < 30 mg/kg(2)) adults. The Perceived Stress Scale (PSS) questionnaire was used to assess perceived stress over the last 4 weeks. A hair sample was obtained from the vertex posterior. Cortisol was measured using an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. We included fifteen patients (nine females and six males) and 39 non-obese control subjects (20 females, 19 males). PSS scores (median and range) were significantly higher in chronic pain patients (24: 12-28) than in controls (12: 3-31)(P < 0.001). Hair cortisol contents (median and range) were significantly greater in chronic pain patients (83.1: 33.0-205 g/mg) than in controls (46.1: 27.2-200 pg/mg) (P < 0.01). We conclude that hair cortisol contents are increased in patients with major chronic stress. Measurement of cortisol levels in hair constitutes a novel biomarker of prolonged stress.

Computerized photo-plethysmography of the finger.

A microcomputer system for studying photo-plethysmography of the finger (PPF) was designed and applied to 50 non-premedicated healthy boys (one to ten years old) undergoing general anaesthesia (halothane in 70% N2O, with mechanical ventilation) for outpatient inguinal hernia repair. The purpose of this study was to assess the accuracy of computerized estimations of the photo-plethysmographic (arterial waves) amplitude and to evaluate whether or not PPF allows discrimination between two different surgical stimuli (skin incision, and manipulation of the spermatic cord). When anaesthesia was stable for at least five minutes (end-tidal halothane = 1.25-1.5%; PETCO2 = 32-38 mmHg; SpO2 > or = 98%; rectal temperature = 36.3-37 degrees C; ambient operating room temperature = 20-21 degrees C), and immediately before the skin incision, computerized estimations of the photo-plethysmographic (arterial waves) amplitudes (PPA) were recorded and saved for later comparison with direct (manual) measurements of the plethysmographic tracing, using an arbitrary scale of 0-255 units. Also, the values of PPA, systolic blood pressure, and pulse rate recorded immediately before the skin incision were later compared with the maximum changes in these same values recorded 30-90 sec after skin incision, and 30-90 sec after manipulation (traction+dissection) of the spermatic cord. Six boys (three to ten years old) stayed quiet enough, during induction of anaesthesia by mask, to allow regression analysis of PPA, systolic blood pressure, and pulse rate (Y) on end-tidal halothane/70% N2O (X). Computerized estimations tended to give a higher reading, by between 0.2 to 0.8 units, than direct measurements.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Socio-demographic variations in the sex composition and preferences of Aberdeen families.

PIP: In contrast to early studies of parental preference for the sex of their offspring which showed an overriding son preference in terms of both the expressed desires for a male infant and of sex ratio of completed families, more recent studies show the desire for a balance of sexes outweighs the preference for a particular sex. A recent attitude survey in the UK confirms this and also claims to find no difference in the pattern of preferences between social classes. This article examines family building patterns among Aberdeen families over the last 20 years in the light of these earlier findings. The analysis shows 1st that considerably more families continue to have a 3rd child after 2 children of the same sex than after 1 boy and 1 girl, thus supporting the proposition that parents prefer a balanced sex composition. 2nd, a multivariate analysis of the data shows in contrast to other findings that this tendency does vary according to social class, families headed by unskilled workers tending to continue to have a 3rd child relatively more often after 2 girls than after 2 boys, while upper social class families tend to have a 3rd child relatively more often after 2 boys.^ieng