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Blunted Cortisol Response to Stress May Indicate Premorbid Risk for Insomnia
New research confirmed that a blunted cortisol response to stress is a “reproducible” biomarker for premorbid insomnia, a finding that furthers the understanding of causes underlying sleep reactivity. The study, conducted within the Henry Ford Health System in the United States, was published online ahead of print in Psychoneuroendocrinology.
“Insomnia-risk as indicated by sleep reactivity is associated with blunted cortisol responses to psychosocial and physical laboratory stressors among premorbid adults without insomnia disorder,” Anthony N. Reffi, PhD, postdoctoral fellow, Henry Ford Health System, Detroit, MI, and co-authors noted.
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Researchers sought study participants that have no reported history of insomnia. The participants were then divided into 2 groups according to the method of induced stress response through either the Trier Social Stress Test (TSST; n=35) or the Cold Pressor Task (CPT; n=34). Risk for insomnia following the stress tests was evaluated using the Ford Insomnia Response to Stress Test (FIRST) and the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis (HPA) and autonomic nervous system (ANS) measures.
Study participants who exhibited a high FIRST score (over 18), indicating a high risk for insomnia, also displayed a blunted cortisol response to both stressors, as revealed by HPA markers. The authors did not observe any differences in ANS response across the different groups.
“This study replicates previous research and supports a blunted cortisol response to stress as a biomarker for insomnia vulnerability that may be detected using the FIRST,” the authors concluded.
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