Post-dexamethasone cortisol, self-inflicted injury, and suicidal ideation among depressed adolescent girls

J Abnorm Child Psychol. 2015 May;43(4):619-32. doi: 10.1007/s10802-014-9933-2.

Abstract

Although the dexamethasone suppression test (DST) has limited use as a biomarker of depression given inadequate sensitivity and specificity, it marks prospective risk for suicide among adults. However, few studies have examined associations between the DST, suicidal ideation, and self-inflicted injury (SII) among adolescents, even though SII is the single best predictor of eventual suicide. We evaluated the DST as a correlate of suicidal ideation and retrospective reports of self-inflicted injury (SII) among adolescent girls, ages 13-17, with histories of depression (n = 28) or depression and self-harm (n = 29). Lower post-DST cortisol was associated with suicidal ideation and SII, over-and-above parent-reports and combined parent-/self-reports of internalizing and externalizing behavior. These findings are consistent with recent acquired capacity models of stress-related psychopathology in which hypothalamic-pituitary adrenal (HPA) axis function is altered through epigenetic/allostatic mechanisms among vulnerable individuals who incur adversity early in life.

Publication types

  • Research Support, N.I.H., Extramural

MeSH terms

  • Adolescent
  • Biomarkers / metabolism
  • Depressive Disorder, Major / metabolism*
  • Dexamethasone / pharmacology*
  • Female
  • Glucocorticoids / pharmacology*
  • Humans
  • Hydrocortisone / metabolism*
  • Hypothalamo-Hypophyseal System / metabolism*
  • Pituitary-Adrenal System / metabolism*
  • Self-Injurious Behavior / metabolism*
  • Suicidal Ideation*

Substances

  • Biomarkers
  • Glucocorticoids
  • Dexamethasone
  • Hydrocortisone