title: Anxiety and the dexamethasone suppression test monitored with saliva.
abstract: To assess the effect of anxiety on response to the Dexamethasone Suppression Test (DST), cortisol concentrations were determined in patients who had various diagnoses, with anxiety as a secondary characteristic. Saliva was collected before and after venepuncture at 4:05 PM following completion of the Leeds Questionnaire at 3:00 PM. Matrix effects, which caused an initial artefactual decrease in cortisol levels in some saliva samples in patients with high anxiety, could be eliminated by repeated freezing/thawing. There was no significant difference between salivary cortisol concentrations before and after venepuncture, indicating that variability in response to the DST is not a correlate of anxiety and stressful venepuncture. There was no association between anxiety scores and plasma or salivary cortisol values: thus, anxiety is unlikely to be a major contributory cause of nonsuppression of hypercortisolemia in the DST.
authors: Tenovus Institute, University of Wales College of Medicine, Heath Park, Cardiff.
authors: B
authors: B
authors: Harris
authors: N
authors: N
authors: Cook
authors: N
authors: N
authors: Warner
authors: G F
authors: GF
authors: Read
authors: R F
authors: RF
authors: Walker
authors: R
authors: R
authors: Thomas
authors: D
authors: D
authors: Riad-Fahmy
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D001008:Anxiety Disorders / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000523:psychology; D003907:Dexamethasone; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D006854:Hydrocortisone / Q000378:metabolism*; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D011581:Psychological Tests; D012463:Saliva / Q000378:metabolism*
chemical_list: D003907:Dexamethasone; D006854:Hydrocortisone