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Abstract. Sleep-electroencephalography, and the nocturnal secretion of cortisol and GH were investigated simultaneously in a sample of 25 male normal controls (27.1 ± 1.3 years) in order further to examine interaction between sleep structure and concurrent endocrine activity. Slow wave sleep activity was increased during the first part of the night, whereas cortisol concentration was low and GH output reached maximal levels. The second half of the night was characterized by a relative preponderance of REM-sleep, low GH-concentration, and an increase in cortisol. However, no distinct reciprocal interaction between cortisol and GH concentration was noted. In all subjects, a pronounced GH surge between 22.00 and 02.00 h was recorded which occurred independently of the presence of slow wave sleep. Six out of the 25 subjects showed nocturnal GH increases even before sleep onset. These data indicate that somatotropic cell activity during night is less dependent upon the sleeping state or specific conventially defined sleep stages than originally reported.

The alcohol withdrawal syndrome consists of autonomic, neurological and mental symptoms. For its assessment, these symptoms have to be rated in a quantitative and valid manner. We developed a new rating scale for mild and moderate alcohol withdrawal states. Difficulty, discrimination coefficient, internal consistency, and the principal component analysis were assessed. External validation was tested on a separate sample of inpatients. Eight of 12 original items fulfilled test-theoretical criteria. From these a psychosensory and an autonomic factor have been extracted. This instrument can be used repeatedly for clinical assessment as well as for evaluation of the alcohol withdrawal syndrome in clinical drug studies.

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