Salivary cortisol levels in socially phobic adolescent girls

Abstract

Anxiety disorders such as social phobia (SP) often have their onset during adolescence and frequently precede the onset of major depression. Dysregulation of the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis is well-documented in major depression. Consequently, there is considerable interest in HPA function in anxiety disorders. We examined salivary cortisol levels in 27 SP adolescent girls and 21 matched controls during normal daily activities, and immediately before and after a modified Trier Social Stress Test (TSST). Both SP subjects and controls showed significant elevations in cortisol levels prior to the TSST, and prior to attending school. These results suggest that salivary cortisol is a sensitive measure of anticipatory anxiety, but we failed to find significant differences between SP subjects and controls.