@article{a1535ce80c4c49daa899c05593d861fd,
title = "Role of cortisol in mood and memory in patients with intractable temporal lobe epilepsy",
abstract = "Objective: This study prospectively examined the relationships among late night salivary cortisol (NSC) levels and depressive symptoms, memory performance, and hippocampal volumes in patients with medically intractable temporal lobe epilepsy (TLE) and the potential mediating effects of cortisol in the relationships between these variables. Methods: Participants included 24 adults with well-characterized medically refractory TLE (right = 11; left = 12; bitemporal = 1). All patients provided saliva samples and completed measures of mood, anxiety, and memory (objective and subjective). MRI-based volumetric analyses of the hippocampi were also conducted. Results: As hypothesized, cortisol was found to be negatively related to several memory measures such that patients with higher cortisol levels demonstrated lower memory performance. However, unexpectedly, cortisol was not related to current symptoms of depression or anxiety, subjective memory ratings, or hippocampal volumes. Consistent with previous findings in the literature, a number of other relationships among the study variables were observed (objective memory and hippocampal volume; subjective memory and mood/anxiety). Results of mediator analyses suggested that cortisol does not mediate the relationship between depression and memory dysfunction or the relationship between depression and hippocampal atrophy. Conclusions: While cortisol may play a role in memory performance in patients with TLE, it does not fully explain the relationship between depression and mesial temporal dysfunction, likely reflecting the complex and multifactorial relationships among these variables. Results confirm the relationship between memory performance and structural brain integrity and provide further support for a role of depression in subjective memory complaints.",
author = "Busch, {R. M.} and T. Frazier and Chapin, {J. S.} and Hamrahian, {A. H.} and B. Diehl and A. Alexopoulos and K. Unnwongse and Naugle, {R. I.} and Kubu, {C. S.} and Tesar, {G. E.} and Najm, {I. M.}",
note = "Funding Information: Dr. Busch has received research support from the Epilepsy Foundation and the NIH/NCRR. Dr. Frazier serves on the editorial board of Assessment; has served as a consultant for Shire plc; and has received research support from Bristol-Myers Squibb, the NIH/NCRR, and the Brain and Behavior Research Foundation. Dr. Chapin has received research support from the American Parkinson Disease Association and the American Psychological Association, Division 40. Dr. Hamrahian and Dr. Diehl report no disclosures. Dr. Alexopoulos serves on the editorial board of Epileptic Disorders; is employed as a full-time adult epileptologist, who performs video-EEG, EEG, and other clinical neurophysiology studies at the Cleveland Clinical Epilepsy Center and bills for these procedures; serves on the speakers' bureau of UCB; and has received research support from UCB, Pfizer Inc., the US Department of Defense, and the American Epilepsy Society. Dr. Unnwongse reports no disclosures. Dr. Naugle serves on editorial advisory boards for Neuropsychology and The Clinical Neuropsychologist. Dr. Kubu serves as a consultant for Medtronic, Inc.; is co-author on a patent filed examining deep brain stimulation in the treatment of neuropsychological disorders; and receives research support from the NIH (NIMH, NINDS) and the Greenwall Foundation. Dr. Tesar reports no disclosures. Dr. Najm serves as an Associate Editor for Epileptic Disorders; serves on the speakers' bureau for UCB; and receives research support from the US Department of Defense. Funding Information: Study funding: Supported by the Epilepsy Foundation through the Targeted Research Initiative for Mood Disorders. Additional support for this research was provided by NIH/NCRR, CTSA 1UL1 RR024989, Cleveland, Ohio, and the Cleveland Clinic Epilepsy Center. ",
year = "2012",
month = apr,
day = "3",
doi = "10.1212/WNL.0b013e31824e8efb",
language = "English (US)",
volume = "78",
pages = "1064--1068",
journal = "Neurology",
issn = "0028-3878",
publisher = "Lippincott Williams and Wilkins",
number = "14",
}