Cortisol and alpha-amylase assessment in psychotherapeutic intervention studies: A systematic review

Publication date: Available online 11 October 2018Source: Neuroscience & Biobehavioral ReviewsAuthor(s): Sebastian Laufer, Sinha Engel, Christine Knaevelsrud, Sarah SchumacherAbstractDysregulations of the hypothalamus-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis and the autonomic nervous system (ANS) as parts of the stress response system have been associated with development and maintenance of various mental disorders. It has been suggested that these alterations might normalize in the course of psychotherapy. We conducted a comprehensive review of psychotherapeutic intervention effects on HPA axis and ANS regulation in adult samples with mental disorders.We searched four databases for psychotherapeutic intervention studies with mentally ill patient samples, assessing cortisol and/or α-amylase before and after treatment. Study quality and confounder consideration within biomarker assessment were examined.Twenty-five studies were included. Psychotherapeutic interventions and biomarker assessment methodology varied substantially between studies. Accordingly, meta-analytical computations were deemed unfeasible. Study characteristics especially regarding cortisol and α-amylase assessment and analysis procedures were comprehensively reviewed. Study quality and biomarker confounder consideration ratings were mostly moderate to strong.Based on the results, we provide recommendations regarding intervention design and biomarker assessment methodology to increase comparability of psychotherapeutic ...
Source: Neuroscience and Biobehavioral Reviews - Category: Neuroscience Source Type: research