Impact of Surgical Status, Loneliness, and Disability on Interleukin 6, C-Reactive Protein, Cortisol, and Estrogen in Females with Symptomatic Type I Chiari Malformation

Monica A. Garcia, Xuan Li, Philip A. Allen, Douglas L. Delahanty, Maggie S. Eppelheimer, James R. Houston, Dawn M. Johnson, Frank Loth, Jahangir Maleki, Sarel Vorster, Mark G. Luciano

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

Abstract

Chiari malformation type I (CMI) provides an opportunity for examining possible moderators of allostatic load. CMI patients who had (n = 43) and had not (n = 19) undergone decompression surgery completed questionnaires regarding pain, disability, and loneliness, and provided serum samples for IL-6, CRP, estrogen, and free estradiol assays, and saliva samples to assess diurnal cortisol curves. ANOVAs examining surgical status (decompressed versus non-decompressed), loneliness (high vs. low), and disability (high vs. low) as independent variables and biomarker variables as dependent factors found that loneliness was associated with higher levels of cortisol, F(1, 37) = 4.91, p =.04, η2P =.11, and lower levels of estrogen, F(1, 36) = 7.29, p =.01, η2P =.17, but only in decompressed patients. Results highlight the possible impact of loneliness on biological stress responses and the need to intervene to reduce loneliness in patients with symptomatic CMI.

Original languageEnglish (US)
Pages (from-to)872-886
Number of pages15
JournalCerebellum
Volume20
Issue number6
DOIs
StatePublished - Dec 2021

Keywords

  • C-Reactive Protein
  • Chiari malformation
  • Cortisol
  • Estrogen
  • Interleukin 6
  • Loneliness

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • Clinical Neurology
  • Neurology

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