Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Faculty of Medicine, Technische Universität Dresden, Fetscherstrasse 74, 01307, Dresden, Germany.
Institute of Biopsychology, Department of Psychology, Technische Universität Dresden, Dresden, Germany.
Eur Child Adolesc Psychiatry. 2022 May;31(5):771-779. doi: 10.1007/s00787-020-01714-1. Epub 2021 Jan 18.
There is clear evidence that tic disorders (TDs) are associated with psychosocial stress as well as emotional and behavioral problems. Studies have shown that individuals with TDs have higher acute physiological stress responses to external, single stressors (as reflected by saliva cortisol). The aim of the present study was to examine a physiological marker of longer-term stress (as reflected by hair cortisol concentration) in children and adolescents with TDs and unaffected siblings of individuals with TDs.
Two samples of a European cohort were included in this study. In the COURSE sample, 412 children and adolescents aged 3-16 years with a chronic TD including Tourette syndrome according to DSM IV-TR criteria were included. The ONSET sample included 131 3-10 years old siblings of individuals with TDs, who themselves had no tics. Differences in hair cortisol concentration (HCC) between the two samples were examined. Within the COURSE sample, relations of HCC with tic severity and perceived psychosocial stress as well as potential effects and interaction effects of comorbid emotional and behavioral problems and psychotropic medication on HCC were investigated.
There were no differences in HCC between the two samples. In participants with TDs, there were no associations between HCC and tic severity or perceived psychosocial stress. No main effects of sex, psychotropic medication status and comorbid emotional and behavioral problems on HCC were found in participants with TDs.
A link between HCC and TDs is not supported by the present results.
有明确的证据表明，抽动障碍（TDs）与心理社会应激以及情绪和行为问题有关。研究表明，TDs 患者对外界单一应激源的急性生理应激反应更高（反映在唾液皮质醇水平上）。本研究旨在检查 TD 患者和 TD 患者无 tic 兄弟姐妹的儿童和青少年的长期应激生理标志物（反映在头发皮质醇浓度上）。
本研究纳入了一个欧洲队列的两个样本。在 COURSE 样本中，纳入了 412 名年龄在 3-16 岁的慢性 TD 儿童和青少年，包括符合 DSM-IV-TR 标准的抽动秽语综合征。ONSET 样本包括 131 名年龄在 3-10 岁的 TD 患者的兄弟姐妹，他们自己没有 tic。检查了两个样本之间的头发皮质醇浓度（HCC）差异。在 COURSE 样本中，研究了 HCC 与 tic 严重程度和感知心理社会应激的关系，以及共患情绪和行为问题以及精神药物对 HCC 的潜在影响和交互作用。
两个样本之间的 HCC 没有差异。在 TD 患者中，HCC 与 tic 严重程度或感知心理社会应激之间没有关联。在 TD 患者中，未发现性别、精神药物状态和共患情绪和行为问题对 HCC 的主要影响。
本研究结果不支持 HCC 与 TDs 之间存在联系。
