Laboratory of Translational Research "Stress and Immunity", Department of Anesthesiology, LMU University Hospital, LMU Munich, Marchioninistr. 15, 81377, Munich, Germany.
Department of Medicine I, LMU University Hospital, LMU Munich, Marchioninistr. 15, 81377, Munich, Germany.
Transl Psychiatry. 2024 Jan 31;14(1):71. doi: 10.1038/s41398-024-02771-9.
The pandemic caused by SARS-CoV-2 impacted health systems globally, creating increased workload and mental stress upon health care workers (HCW). During the first pandemic wave (March to May 2020) in southern Germany, we investigated the impact of stress and the resilience to stress in HCW by measuring changes in hair concentrations of endocannabinoids, endocannabinoid-like compounds and cortisone. HCW (n = 178) recruited from multiple occupation and worksites in the LMU-University-Hospital in Munich were interviewed at four interval visits to evaluate mental stress associated with the COVID-19 pandemic. A strand of hair of up to 6 cm in length was sampled once in May 2020, which enabled retrospective individual stress hormone quantifications during that aforementioned time period. Perceived anxiety and impact on mental health were demonstrated to be higher at the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic and decreased significantly thereafter. Resilience was stable over time, but noted to be lower in women than in men. The concentrations of the endocannabinoid anandamide (AEA) and the structural congeners N-palmitoylethanolamide (PEA), N-oleoylethanolamide (OEA) and N-stearoylethanolamide (SEA) were noted to have decreased significantly over the course of the pandemic. In contrast, the endocannabinoid 2-arachidonoylglycerol (2-AG) levels increased significantly and were found to be higher in nurses, laboratory staff and hospital administration than in physicians. PEA was significantly higher in subjects with a higher resilience but lower in subjects with anxiety. SEA was also noted to be reduced in subjects with anxiety. Nurses had significantly higher cortisone levels than physicians, while female subjects had significant lower cortisone levels than males. Hair samples provided temporal and measurable objective psychophysiological-hormonal information. The hair endocannabinoids/endocannabinoid-like compounds and cortisone correlated to each other and to professions, age and sex quite differentially, relative to specific periods of the COVID-19 pandemic.
由 SARS-CoV-2 引起的大流行对全球卫生系统造成了影响，给医护人员（HCW）带来了更大的工作量和精神压力。在德国南部的第一波大流行期间（2020 年 3 月至 5 月），我们通过测量头发中内源性大麻素、内源性大麻素样化合物和皮质醇的浓度变化，来研究 HCW 的压力影响和抗压能力。我们从慕尼黑 LMU-University-Hospital 的多个职业和工作场所招募了 178 名 HCW，在四个间隔访问中对他们进行了采访，以评估与 COVID-19 大流行相关的精神压力。在 2020 年 5 月采集了长达 6 厘米的头发样本，这使得能够对上述时间段内的个体应激激素进行回顾性定量分析。结果表明，在 COVID-19 大流行开始时，焦虑感和对心理健康的影响更高，此后显著下降。抗压能力随着时间的推移保持稳定，但女性的抗压能力低于男性。内源性大麻素大麻酰胺（AEA）和结构同系物 N-棕榈酰乙醇酰胺（PEA）、N-油酰乙醇酰胺（OEA）和 N-硬脂酰乙醇酰胺（SEA）的浓度在大流行期间显著下降。相比之下，内源性大麻素 2-花生四烯酸甘油（2-AG）的水平显著升高，在护士、实验室工作人员和医院管理人员中的水平高于医生。在抗压能力较高的受试者中，PEA 显著升高，而在焦虑受试者中则降低。SEA 在焦虑受试者中也被发现减少。护士的皮质醇水平明显高于医生，而女性的皮质醇水平明显低于男性。头发样本提供了可衡量的客观生理激素信息。头发内源性大麻素/内源性大麻素样化合物和皮质醇相互关联，并与职业、年龄和性别相关，与 COVID-19 大流行的特定时期密切相关。
