Retrospective Hair Cortisol Concentrations from Pretreatment to Early Recovery in Alcohol Use Disorder

We examined HCC from three consecutive segments; proximal to the scalp representing the most recent month (sustained abstinence from alcohol), the midsegment representing the previous month in which abstinenc e was attained, and the distal segment representing 2 months prior during active drinking. Analyses examined main and interactive effects of segment and sex, controlling for monthly alcohol consumption. Best fit by a quadratic shape, within-subject change was significant (F1,15 = 5.27,P = 0.04,ηpartial2 = 0.26). The distal and midsegments did not differ from one another (P = 0.51). The proximal segment was significantly lower than both the distal (M ∆ = 0.200,P = 0.004) and mid (M ∆ = 0.175,P <  0.001) segments. An effect of sex approached significance suggesting women had modestly higher HCC than men (MWOMEN = 1.37 vs.MMEN = 1.02,P = 0.10). Consistent with previous cross-sectional reports, these data confirm nonlinear patterns of cortisol accumulation with elevations apparent during periods of alcohol consumption and a decrease in abstinence. Capturing these within-subject patterns via HCC trajectories may serve as a valuab le resource in identifying profiles associated with increased risk and post-treatment outcomes.

Source: Alcohol and Alcoholism - December 7, 2020 Category: Addiction Source Type: research