Salivary cortisol hypersecretion in juvenile depression.

Thirty depressed inpatients aged 7-16 yrs were compared for salivary hypercortisolism with a control group of 16 inpatients of mixed diagnosis matched for age and sex. Four cortisol samples were taken over a 48 hr period: 8 a.m. and 11 p.m. on the first day; then, with 1 mg of dexamethasone given immediately after the second sample, at 4 p.m. and 11 p.m. on the second day. All except the 8 a.m. value were significantly greater (P less than 0.03) in the depressed group. A 4 nmol/l cutoff for the 4 p.m. sample gave 48% sensitivity and 91% specificity for discriminating depressed cases (P = 0.03). The results indicate that the salivary method for estimating cortisol levels in children and adolescents with depression warrants further study.