Psychiatry Investig.
2016 Nov;13(6):616-621. 10.4306/pi.2016.13.6.616.
The Levels of Cortisol and Oxidative Stress and DNA Damage in Child and Adolescent Victims of Sexual Abuse with or without Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder
- Affiliations
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- 1Department of Child Psychiatry, Dicle University, Medical School, Diyarbakır, Turkey. drserefsimsek@gmail.com
- 2Department of Biochemistry, Dicle University, Medical School, Diyarbakır, Turkey.
- 3Department of Forensic Medicine, Dicle University, Medical School, Diyarbakır, Turkey.
- KMID: 2360378
- DOI: http://doi.org/10.4306/pi.2016.13.6.616
Abstract
OBJECTIVE
The aim of this study was to investigate whether cortisol and oxidative stress levels and DNA damage differ between individuals who developed PTSD or not following a sexual trauma.
METHODS
The study included 61 children aged between 5 and 17 years who sustained sexual abuse (M/F: 18/43). The patients were divided into two groups: patients with PTSD and patients without PTSD based, based on the results of a structured psychiatric interview (K-SADS-PL and CAPS-CA). Cortisol, glutathione peroxidase (GPx), superoxide dismutase (SOD), coenzyme Q, 8-Hydroxy-2-Deoxyguanosine (8-OHdG) were all evaluated by the ELISA method.
RESULTS
Our evaluation revealed a diagnosis of PTSD in 51% (n=31) of victims. There was no significant difference between the groups with or without PTSD in terms of cortisol, GPx, SOD, coenzyme Q, and 8-OHdG levels. There was no correlation between CAPS scores and GPx, SOD, coenzyme Q, and 8-OHdG levels between patients with or without PTSD. In patients with PTSD, both cortisol and 8-OHdG levels decreased with increasing time after trauma, and there was no significant correlation with cortisol and 8-OHdG levels in patients without PTSD.
CONCLUSION
Although the present study did not find any difference between the groups in terms of 8-OHdG concentrations, the decreases in both cortisol and 8-OHdG levels with increasing time after trauma is considered to indicate a relationship between cortisol and DNA damage.
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