Correlation analysis of cortisol concentration in hair versus concentrations in serum, saliva, and urine

Abstract

Introduction: Cortisol concentration is measured in blood, urine, and saliva samples. It has been recently proven that cortisol could also be detected in hair samples. Cortisol measurements in different samples have their own individual characteristics and clinical utility. We aimed to investigate the correlation between hair cortisol concentration and standard cortisol measurements used in clinical practice. Material and methods: Fifty adult volunteers with a negative history of endocrine disorders were enrolled in the study. Morning serum cortisol (MSC), evening serum cortisol (ESC), evening free salivary cortisol (EFSC), urine free cortisol (UFC), and hair cortisol concentration (HCC) were analysed in all participants. Eventually, 41 volunteers were included into the study, whose cortisol concentration in the 1 mg overnight dexamethasone suppression test (1 mg ONDST) were < 50 nmol/L, and cortisol levels in serum, saliva, and urine were within reference ranges. Hair cortisol concentration test was performed for 20 mg of hair strands of the proximal 1 cm hair segments. Results: Hair cortisol concentration ranged from 0.3036 to 2.65 nmol/L/mg, and the average value was 0.8125 ± 0.4834 nmol/L/mg. No significant correlations were found between HCC and MSC (rho = 0.04419, p = 0.7838), HCC and ESC (rho =-0.2071, p = 0.1938), HCC and EFSC (rho = 0.1005, p = 0.532), or HCC and UFC (rho = 0.1793, p = 0.262). Conclusions: This work is another step in the discussion on the application of HCC determinations in clinical practice. Our results have showed no correlations between HCC and single point cortisol assessment in blood, saliva, and urine in patients with reference cortisol levels.

Association between prenatal maternal anxiety and/or stress and offspring's cognitive functioning: A meta‐analysis

“…Alternatively, this high heterogeneity might result from the wide range of measures used to assess stress and anxiety across studies. Indeed, these measures were found to have varying psychometric properties and be differently associated with one another and with children's cognitive outcomes, making these instruments not interchangeable (Cieszyński et al, 2020 ; Epel et al, 2018 ; Graignic‐Philippe et al, 2014 ; Nast et al, 2013 ; Short et al, 2016 ; Vanaelst et al, 2012 ). Lastly, due to the sampling of the studies included in this meta‐analysis, our findings are mainly based on studies conducted with White populations.…”

The relationship between worker-occupation fit and cortisol concentration of hair and plasma among medical workers

“…Disorders of the HPA axis and chronically elevated cortisol levels have been associated with various health conditions, including hypertension [27], insulin resistance[28], dyslipidemia [29], and obesity [30]. At present, the predominant matrices for cortisol examination include blood [31], urine [32,33], saliva [34,35], and hair [36,37]. Cortisol concentrations in blood, urine, and saliva primarily re ect acute stress responses [38][39][40].…”

“…Cortisol concentrations in blood, urine, and saliva primarily re ect acute stress responses [38][39][40]. While hair cortisol concentration has expected response to longterm chronic stress [31,40]. Considering the rate of hair growth (approximately 1 cm per month), cortisol levels closer to the scalp in a hair sample represent stress levels experienced in the past month [41].…”