title: Hot flashes and midlife symptoms in relation to levels of salivary cortisol.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  This study examined the relationship between salivary cortisol levels and hot flashes during midlife. Previous studies have shown that cortisol levels increase with hot flashes in the laboratory, and higher cortisol levels have been associated with more severe hot flashes. Salivary cortisol levels were also examined in relation to total number of midlife symptoms.
  
  
  METHODS
  Women aged 40-60 years (n=109) reported the presence or absence of 23 symptoms, including hot flashes, during the previous 2 weeks. Salivary samples were collected at waking, 30min after waking, 1h before bedtime, and at bedtime. The cortisol awakening response (CAR), cortisol daily decline (CDD), log transformed salivary cortisol levels at each time point, and mean cortisol levels were compared by hot flash report using t-tests. Logistic regression analyses were performed to assess the association between each cortisol measure and the presence or absence of hot flashes, after controlling for potential covariates.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Salivary cortisol levels were not significantly associated with hot flashes or sum of symptoms. Hot flash report did not differentiate women who had a positive CAR from those who did not, or women who showed strong CDD from those who did not.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Symptomatic women - defined by hot flash report or symptom total - were not found to have higher salivary cortisol levels.
authors.affiliation: Department of Healthcare Policy & Research, Division of Biostatistics and Epidemiology, Weill Cornell Medical College, United States; Department of Medicine, Division of Nephrology & Hypertension, Weill Cornell Medical College, United States. Electronic address: lig2002@med.cornell.edu.
authors.forename: Linda M
authors.initials: LM
authors.lastname: Gerber
authors.affiliation: Department of Anthropology, University of Massachusetts Amherst, United States.
authors.forename: Lynnette L
authors.initials: LL
authors.lastname: Sievert
authors.affiliation: Center for Behavioral Cardiovascular Health, Columbia University, United States; Department of Psychiatry, Stony Brook University, United States.
authors.forename: Joseph E
authors.initials: JE
authors.lastname: Schwartz
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D005260:Female; D019584:Hot Flashes / Q000150:complications / Q000378:metabolism*; D006801:Humans; D006854:Hydrocortisone / Q000378:metabolism*; D008593:Menopause / Q000378:metabolism*; D008875:Middle Aged; D012463:Saliva / Q000378:metabolism*; D013997:Time Factors
chemical_list: D006854:Hydrocortisone
keywords: Hot flashes; Hot flushes; Menopause; Salivary cortisol; Stress