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American Journal of Medical Genetics Part B Neuropsychiatric Genetics 05/2012; 159B(5):611-2. · 3.70 Impact Factor
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ABSTRACT: Major depression (MD) is often associated with disturbances of the hypothalamic/pituitary/thyroid (HPT) axis. Unfortunately, whether this association is secondary to common underlying genetic variation or whether the MD-associated disturbances in HPT function are chronic or state-dependent is unknown. To examine these questions, we genotyped 12 single nucleotide polymorphisms identified in previous genome wide association analyses of thyroid function in DNA contributed by 1,555 subjects from three longitudinal ethnically diverse studies that are well-characterized for lifetime MD and thyroid function. We then examined associations between genetic variants and key outcomes of thyroid stimulating hormone, free thyroxine (FT4) and depression. We confirmed prior findings that two variants in deiodinase 1 (DIO1), including a variant in the 3'UTR of DIO1 (rs11206244), were associated with altered FT4 levels in both White and African American subjects. We also found that rs11206244 genotype was associated with lifetime MD in White female subjects, in particular those from high-risk cohorts. However, we found no association of current FT4 levels with lifetime MD in either ethnic group. We conclude that genetic variation influencing thyroid function is a risk factor for MD. Given the evidence from prior studies, further investigations of role of HPT variation in etiology and treatment of MD are indicated.
American Journal of Medical Genetics Part B Neuropsychiatric Genetics 07/2011; 156B(5):593-9. · 3.70 Impact Factor
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Susan K Lutgendorf,
Elizabeth Mullen-Houser, Daniel Russell,
Koen Degeest,
Geraldine Jacobson,
Laura Hart,
David Bender,
Barrie Anderson,
Thomas E Buekers,
Michael J Goodheart,
Michael H Antoni,
Anil K Sood,
David M Lubaroff
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ABSTRACT: Patients receiving chemoradiation for cervical cancer are at risk for distress, chemoradiation-related side-effects, and immunosuppression. This prospective randomized clinical trial examined effects of a complementary therapy, Healing Touch (HT), versus relaxation training (RT) and usual care (UC) for (1) supporting cellular immunity, (2) improving mood and quality of life (QOL), and (3) reducing treatment-associated toxicities and treatment delay in cervical cancer patients receiving chemoradiation. Sixty women with stages IB1 to IVA cervical cancer were randomly assigned to receive UC or 4 ×/weekly individual sessions of either HT or RT immediately following radiation during their 6-week chemoradiation treatment. Patients completed psychosocial assessments and blood sampling before chemoradiation at baseline, weeks 4 and 6. Multilevel regression analyses using orthogonal contrasts tested for differences between treatment conditions over time. HT patients had a minimal decrease in natural killer cell cytotoxicity (NKCC) over the course of treatment whereas NKCC of RT and UC patients declined sharply during chemoradiation (group by time interaction: p = 0.018). HT patients showed greater decreases in two different indicators of depressed mood (CES-D depressed mood subscale and POMS depression scale) compared to RT and UC (group by time interactions: p<0.05). No between group differences were observed in QOL, treatment delay, or clinically-rated toxicities. HT may benefit cervical cancer patients by moderating effects of chemoradiation on depressed mood and cellular immunity. Effects of HT on toxicities, treatment delay, QOL, and fatigue were not observed. Long-term clinical implications of findings are not known.
Brain Behavior and Immunity 11/2010; 24(8):1231-40. · 4.72 Impact Factor
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ABSTRACT: This study investigated the association between hostility and health and whether it is moderated by the quality of an individual's primary romantic relationship.
Longitudinal data were provided by 184 African Americans, including 166 women. Participants averaged 38 years old and were married or in long-term marriagelike relationships. Hostility and relationship quality were measured at the first assessment. Hostility was based on participants' responses to items tapping cynical attitudes about relationships. Relationship quality was based on trained observer ratings of videotaped couple interactions on behavioral scales reflecting warmth, support, and communication skills. At 2 assessments approximately 5 and 7 years later, participants provided health data. Health index scores were formed from responses to five scales of the SF-12 (Ware, Kosinski, & Keller, 1998) as well as to responses to questions about the number of chronic health conditions and the number of prescribed medications.
Stepwise regression analyses controlling for demographic variables and the earlier health score tested the main and interactive effects of hostility and relationship quality on longitudinal changes in health. Whereas no main effects were supported, the interaction of hostility and relationship quality was significant (p < .05). The form of the interaction was such that high-hostile individuals had better health outcomes if they were in a high-quality relationship.
Hostile persons in high-quality relationships may be at less risk for negative health outcomes because they do not regularly experience the physiologic reactivity and adverse psychosocial outcomes that they would otherwise experience as a result of recurring interpersonal conflict.
Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology 10/2010; 78(5):646-54. · 4.85 Impact Factor
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Susan K Lutgendorf,
Aliza Z Weinrib,
Frank Penedo, Daniel Russell,
Koen DeGeest,
Erin S Costanzo,
Patrick J Henderson,
Sandra E Sephton,
Nicolas Rohleder,
Joseph A Lucci,
Steven Cole,
Anil K Sood,
David M Lubaroff
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ABSTRACT: Inflammatory processes have been implicated in the pathogenesis of both depression and cancer. Links between depressive symptoms, interleukin-6 (IL-6), and cortisol dysregulation have been demonstrated in cancer patients, but vegetative versus affective components of depression have been minimally examined. The objective of the current study was to examine associations between IL-6, diurnal cortisol rhythms, and facets of depression in epithelial ovarian cancer patients.
Patients awaiting surgery for a pelvic mass suspected for ovarian cancer completed questionnaires, collected salivary samples for 3 days presurgery, and gave a presurgical blood sample. Ascites was obtained during surgery. IL-6 was measured by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay and cortisol by a chemiluminescence immunoassay. The final sample included 112 invasive ovarian cancer patients (86 advanced stage, 26 early stage) and 25 patients with tumors of low malignant potential (LMP).
Advanced-stage ovarian cancer patients demonstrated elevations in vegetative and affective depressive symptoms, plasma IL-6, and the cortisol area under the curve (AUC) compared with patients with LMP tumors (all P < .05). Among invasive ovarian cancer patients, greater vegetative depression was related to elevated IL-6 in plasma (P = .008) and ascites (P = .024), but affective depression was unrelated to IL-6. Elevations in total depression (P = .026) and vegetative depression (P = .005) were also related to higher evening cortisol levels. Plasma IL-6 was related to greater afternoon and evening cortisol and cortisol AUC (all P values < .005).
These results demonstrate significant relationships between IL-6, cortisol, and vegetative depression, and may have implications for treatment of depression in ovarian cancer patients.
Journal of Clinical Oncology 09/2008; 26(29):4820-7. · 18.37 Impact Factor
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ABSTRACT: This study prospectively examined the relationship between religious attendance, interleukin-6 (IL-6) levels, and mortality rates in a community-based sample of 557 older adults. Attending religious services more than once weekly was a significant predictor of lower subsequent 12-year mortality and elevated IL-6 levels (> 3.19 pg/mL), with a mortality ratio of.32 (95% confidence interval [CI] = 0.15,0.72; p <.01) and an odds ratio for elevated IL-6 of.34 (95% CI = 0.16, 0.73, p <.01), compared with never attending religious services. Structural equation modeling indicated religious attendance was significantly related to lower mortality rates and IL-6 levels, and IL-6 levels mediated the prospective relationship between religious attendance and mortality. Results were independent of covariates including age, sex, health behaviors, chronic illness, social support, and depression. Findings are consistent with a role for IL-6 in processes mediating the relationship between religious attendance and mortality.
Health Psychology 09/2004; 23(5):465-75. · 3.87 Impact Factor
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ABSTRACT: Symptom attributions were contrasted between male and female myocardial infarction victims (N = 157) who were comparable on age, cardiac risk status, medical history, symptom presentation, and other variables. Women were less likely than men to attribute their prehospital symptoms to cardiac causes. In the context of hearing symptom attributions or advice from support persons, women were less likely than men to report receiving a cardiac attribution or advice to seek medical attention. Results have implications for how victim gender influences the lay interpretation of cardiac symptoms.
Health Psychology 08/2004; 23(4):345-53. · 3.87 Impact Factor
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ABSTRACT: Four years of longitudinal data from 373 families participating in a randomized intervention-control clinical trial were used to examine whether intervention effects on adolescent alcohol and tobacco use trajectories were moderated by family risk, as defined by parental social emotional maladjustment. Consistent with earlier outcome evaluations based on analyses of covariance, analyses confirmed that both the Preparing for the Drug Free Years program and the Iowa Strengthening Families Program favorably influenced alcohol use index trajectories across the time frame of the study; only the latter program, however, evidenced positive effects on a tobacco use index. Concerning the primary research question, analyses provided no support for family risk moderation of any intervention effect. Findings indicate the feasibility of developing universal preventive interventions that offer comparable benefits to all families.
Journal of Family Psychology 07/2004; 18(2):293-301. · 1.66 Impact Factor
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ABSTRACT: To assess the effects of age on responsiveness to self-hypnotic relaxation as an analgesic adjunct in patients undergoing invasive medical procedures.
Secondary data analysis from a prospective trial with 241 patients randomized to receive hypnosis, attention, and standard care treatment during interventional radiological procedures. Growth curve analyses, hierarchical linear regressions, and logistic regressions using orthogonal contrasts were used for analysis. Outcome measures were Hypnotic Induction Profile scores, self-reported pain and anxiety, medication use, oxygen desaturation < or =89%, and procedure time.
Hypnotizability did not vary with age (p = .19). Patients receiving attention and hypnosis had greater pain reduction during the procedure (p = .02), with trends toward lower pain with hypnosis (p = .07); this did not differ by age. As age increased, patients experienced more rapid pain control with hypnosis (p = .03). There was more rapid anxiety reduction with attention and hypnosis (p = .03). Trends toward lower final anxiety were also observed with attention and hypnosis versus standard care (p = .08), and with hypnosis versus attention (p = .059); these relationships did not differ by age. Patients requested and received less medication and had less oxygen desaturation < or =89% with attention and hypnosis (p < .001); this did not differ by age. However, as age increased, oxygen desaturation was greater in standard care (p = .03). Procedure time was reduced in the attention and hypnosis groups (p = .007); this did not vary by age.
Older patients are hypnotizable and increasing age does not appear to mitigate the usefulness of hypnotic analgesia during invasive medical procedures.
Psychosomatic Medicine 69(2):191-9. · 3.97 Impact Factor
