Neuroendocrine Reactivity During the Naturalistic Stress of an Outward Bound Course

Recent studies have found that subjects with high hostility propensity have greater catecholamine (CA) and cortisol (Cf) levels during laboratory stressors. The present investigation sought to determine if similar patterns would be found in the naturalistic setting of an Outward Bound experience, and if high versus low aerobic fitness would influence CA and CT levels in this setting. Sixty-six individuals volunteered for the study from participants who had registered for a nine-day \u27adult intensive\u27 Outward Bound course. Thirty-one subjects were selected from those who volunteered. The Cook-Medley Hostility Inventory was completed by each subject prior to arriving for their course and aerobic fitness estimates were completed within the first six hours of the course using the University of Houston Non-Exercise Test Stress levels were quantified by urinary CA and CT excretion. Three to five hour urine samples were collected for the following activities: rockclimbing/rappelling, whitewater canoeing, ropes course, off-trail backpacking, commuting from airport to base camp and back, and one night-time sleep sample. At the beginning of each activity period, all subjects voided and at the end of the three to five hour period urine was collected, measured for total volume, and a sample was taken and ftw.en within two hours of collection. The urine was assayed by high-pressure liquid chromatography with electrochemical detection to determine levels of excreted epinephrine (E), norepinephrine (NE), and cortisol (CT). The CA and CT were then quantified by mg of creatinine. Of the 31 subjects (14 females and 17 males), nine were classfied as high hostile (HiHo) and 22 as average to low hostile (LoHo). The classifications for aerobic fitness were: 26 average to high fit (HF) with an estimated max V02 greater than 39 ml/kg for women and 46 ml/kg for men, and five low fit (LF) subjects with lower estimated V02 max. The data were analyzed by the two levels of hostility and two levels of aerobic fitness using univariate ANOVA with repeated measures across activity periods. The analysis of hostility revealed significant CT excretion differences between hostility levels for four of the nine activity periods with the LoHo subjects excreting higher CT levels. The four activities where this was found were: off-trail backpacking, (F=4.74,

Associations of Social Support and 8-Year Follow-Up Depressive Symptoms: Differences in African American and White Caregivers

The present study used data from the Alzheimer’s Study of Emotions in Caregivers (ASEC) to evaluate perceptions of social support assessed at baseline, as well as changes in social support assessed at a follow-up eight-years later, as predictors of symptoms of change in depression, with a focus on race as a potential moderator of these relationships. Specifically, multiple regression analyses adjusted for age, sex, income, education, race, living arrangement of care recipient at baseline, death of care recipient, the cultural justification for caregiving scale (CJCS), and baseline depressive symptoms were conducted to assess baseline social support ratings, as well as the change in social support over time as a predictor of depression at follow-up—with a focus on moderation by race. Baseline social support (F(1,77) = 7.60, p=.008) was associated with fewer depressive symptoms at follow-up for all participants. The change in social support over time was also related to depressive symptoms, with effects moderated by race (F(1,77) = 7.97, p = .007), such that when support decreased over time depressive symptoms at follow-up were higher for Whites, as compared with African Americans, whereas, when social support increased over time depressive symptoms tended to be similar for both groups. These findings indicate that research designed to plan interventions in caregivers must not ignore potential racial differences with regard to the effects of caregiving on mental health

Caregiving, residence, race, and depressive symptoms

The objective of this study is to evaluate the psychological responses to caregiving between black and white dementia caregivers measured by self-reports of depressive symptoms evaluating the impact of sub-components of the Center for Epidemiologic Studies Depression Scale (CES-D) and residential arrangements of the caregiving dyad. The method included 87 intergenerational family caregivers enrolled in the Duke Caregiver Study (50 white and 37 black). Total CES-D and the four sub-components were modeled as dependent measures in separate linear regressions. Three models were examined. The first model tested race, living arrangements, and their interaction. The second model adjusted for age, gender, education, income, health status, cultural justification for caregiving, crime concerns, systolic blood pressure, diastolic blood pressure, and glycosylated hemoglobin. A third model added adjustment for caregiver burden. The results showed that there was a significant race by residence interaction for CES-D, somatic symptoms and depressive affect such that when the dyads are living apart – with the care recipient in their own home or in an institutional setting – whites reported more depressive symptoms than blacks. When the dyads lived together, this was reversed, and blacks reported higher depressive symptoms than whites. To conclude, all the parameters such as race, living arrangements, and the components of depression need to be taken into account to understand the impact of caregiving on the emotional health of caregivers

Hostility, Race, and Glucose Metabolism in Nondiabetic Individuals

OBJECTIVE— The present study was designed to determine whether hostility is differentially related to measures of glucose metabolism in African-Americans and Caucasians. RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS— The relationship of hostility, as measured by a subset of the Cook-Medley hostility scale (CMHOST) inventory items, to various parameters of glucose metabolism were examined in a young, healthy sample of male and female African-American and Caucasian volunteers. Fasting blood samples were collected during an inpatient admission, at which time the CMHOST was also administered. RESULTS— In the entire sample, the CMHOST was found to be significantly correlated with fasting glucose and insulin sensitivity, as measured by the homeostatic model assessment (HOMA). However, the relationship of hostility to these parameters of glucose metabolism was different in African-American and Caucasian subjects. Hostility was significantly related to fasting glucose in African-Americans and to insulin sensitivity and fasting insulin in Caucasian subjects. The relationship of hostility to insulin sensitivity and fasting insulin was partially dependent on BMI in Caucasians, but the relationship of hostility to fasting glucose was unrelated to BMI in African-Americans. CONCLUSIONS— Our data suggest that the relationship of hostility to measures of glucose metabolism is mediated differently in these two ethnic groups. Therefore, hostility seems to be part of a constellation of risk-related behaviors related to BMI in Caucasians but independently related to fasting glucose in African-Americans

Socioeconomic Indices as Independent Correlates of C-Reactive Protein in the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health

Examine the association between SES and C-reactive protein (CRP) to understand how SES may increase the risk of CVD and thus identify targets for prevention measures

Genotype, Childhood Maltreatment, and Their Interaction in the Etiology of Adult Antisocial Behaviors

BACKGROUND: Maltreatment by an adult or caregiver during childhood is a prevalent and important predictor of antisocial behaviors in adulthood. A functional promoter polymorphism in the monoamine oxidase A (MAOA) gene has been implicated as a moderating factor in the relationship between childhood maltreatment and antisocial behaviors. Although there have been numerous attempts at replicating this observation, results remain inconclusive. METHODS: We examined this gene-environment interaction hypothesis in a sample of 3356 white and 960 black men (aged 24-34) participating in the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health. RESULTS: Primary analysis indicated that childhood maltreatment was a significant risk factor for later behaviors that violate rules and the rights of others (p .05). Power analyses indicated that these results were not due to insufficient statistical power. CONCLUSIONS: We could not confirm the hypothesis that MAOA genotype moderates the relationship between childhood maltreatment and adult antisocial behaviors

Depression, Stressful Life Events, and the Impact of Variation in the Serotonin Transporter: Findings from the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent to Adult Health (Add Health)

BackgroundThe low transcriptionally efficient short-allele of the 5HTTLPR serotonin transporter polymorphism has been implicated to moderate the relationship between the experience of stressful life events (SLEs) and depression. Despite numerous attempts at replicating this observation, results remain inconclusive.MethodsWe examined this relationship in young-adult Non-Hispanic white males and females between the ages of 22 and 26 (n = 4724) participating in the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent to Adult Health (Add Health) with follow-up information every six years since 1995.ResultsLinear and logistic regression models, corrected for multiple testing, indicated that carriers of one or more of the S-alleles were more sensitive to stress than those with two L-alleles and at a higher risk for depression. This relationship behaved in a dose-response manner such that the risk for depression was greatest among those who reported experiencing higher numbers of SLEs. In post-hoc analyses we were not able to replicate an interaction effect for suicide ideation but did find suggestive evidence that the effects of SLEs and 5HTTLPR on suicide ideation differed for males and females. There were no effects of childhood maltreatment.DiscussionOur results provide partial support for the original hypothesis that 5-HTTLPR genotype interacts with the experience of stressful life events in the etiology of depression during young adulthood. However, even with this large sample, and a carefully constructed a priori analysis plan, the results were still not definitive. For the purposes of replication, characterizing the 5HTTLPR in other large data sets with extensive environmental and depression measures is needed

Add Health Wave IV Documentation: Cardiovascular Measures Appendix I: Baroreflex Sensitivity and Hemodynamic Recovery

This is an appendix to Add Health Wave IV Documentation: Cardiovascular and Anthropometric Measures (Entzel et al., 2009). Please refer to that user guide for complete descriptions of the cardiovascular data collection procedures and measures disseminated by the study at that time. In addition to the measures described there, this appendix introduces three more constructed measures that are included in the Add Health Wave IV public use data: Baroreflex sensitivity Pulse rate recovery Systolic blood pressure recovery. The rationale for their estimation and description of their quality control are provided below