Greater perceived stress and lower cortisol concentration increase the odds of depressive symptoms among adolescents.
J Affect Disord
; 365: 41-48, 2024 Nov 15.
Article
en En
| MEDLINE
| ID: mdl-39142582
ABSTRACT
BACKGROUND:
Adolescent depression is a major public health concern. Although stress has been linked to more severe depression, its association with mild depression among adolescents is not understood. This study assesses the relationship between perceived stress and cortisol (a physiologic measure of stress) and examines the relationships between these stress measures and depressive symptoms among adolescents 13-19 years of age.METHODS:
Stress was measured with the Perceived Stress Scale-10 and through salivary sampling for cortisol four times throughout the day. The Patient Health Questionnaire-9 was used to measure depressive symptoms (range 0-27), where ≥5 indicated the threshold for experiencing at least mild depressive symptoms. Spearman coefficients and multiple logistic regression models were used to examine the relationships between our variables of interest.RESULTS:
The mean age of the 73 participants in our study was 15.82 years. 49 % of the participants reported depressive symptoms (PHQ-9 score ≥ 5). Both higher perceived stress (odds ratio [OR] = 1.11, p = 0.022) and lower cortisol (area-under-the curve; AUCG) (OR = 0.99, p = 0.009) were associated with increased odds of having depressive symptoms.LIMITATIONS:
Few participants had moderate to severe PHQ-9 depression, therefore our study reported findings on mild depression or greater.CONCLUSIONS:
Perceived stress and cortisol appear to reflect distinct, independent components of the stress experience. However, both greater perceived stress and less circulating cortisol may indicate difficulties in regulating stress as potential factors underlying depressive symptoms. Future research should focus on the different types of adolescent stressors and the importance of routine screening of stress and depression, including mild depression.Palabras clave
Texto completo:
1
Colección:
01-internacional
Base de datos:
MEDLINE
Asunto principal:
Saliva
/
Estrés Psicológico
/
Hidrocortisona
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Depresión
Límite:
Adolescent
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Adult
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Female
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Humans
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Male
Idioma:
En
Revista:
J Affect Disord
Año:
2024
Tipo del documento:
Article
Pais de publicación:
Países Bajos