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. 2016 May:40:37-43.
doi: 10.1016/j.janxdis.2016.04.003. Epub 2016 Apr 4.

Elevated cortisol in healthy female adolescent offspring of mothers with posttraumatic stress disorder

Keke Liu  1 , Camilo J Ruggero  2 , Brandon Goldstein  3 , Daniel N Klein  3 , Greg Perlman  4 , Joan Broderick  5 , Roman Kotov  4
Affiliations

Elevated cortisol in healthy female adolescent offspring of mothers with posttraumatic stress disorder

Keke Liu et al. J Anxiety Disord. 2016 May.

Abstract

Offspring with maternal PTSD are at increased risk of developing PTSD themselves. Alterations in the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis may play a role and have been noted in offspring, although evidence is mostly from adult offspring with PTSD symptoms themselves. The present study of adolescent girls (N=472) and their mothers (n=18 with lifetime PTSD versus n=454 with no PTSD) sought to determine whether healthy, non-affected offspring of mothers with PTSD would exhibit altered HPA axis function. Saliva samples were collected from the adolescent girls at waking, 30min after waking, and 8 pm on 3 consecutive days. Offspring whose mothers were diagnosed with PTSD demonstrated higher cortisol awakening response (CAR; Cohen's d=0.58) and greater total cortisol output (Cohen's d=0.62). In this preliminary study, higher cortisol levels during adolescence among offspring of mothers with PTSD may index a vulnerability in these at-risk youth.

Keywords: Adolescents; Cortisol; HPA axis; Maternal PTSD; Mother-daughter dyads; Posttraumatic stress disorder.

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Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Adjusted mean salivary cortisol values for waking, 30-minutes after waking, and evening between offspring with maternal PTSD (n = 18) and the comparison group (n = 454). Error bars represent 95% confidence interval for the mean.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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