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Investigation of Cortisol Levels in Patients with Anxiety Disorders: A Structured Review

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Behavioral Neurobiology of Stress-related Disorders

Part of the book series: Current Topics in Behavioral Neurosciences ((CTBN,volume 18))

Abstract

Anxiety disorders are common and distressing medical conditions, which typically arise in adolescence or early adult life. They can persist for many years, reducing quality of life, limiting academic and occupational achievement, and being responsible for considerable economic pressures. Although a range of psychological and pharmacological treatments are available, their success is often limited, and many patients remain troubled by significant symptom-related disability for long periods. The detailed pathophysiology of each anxiety disorder is not established, and novel treatments that are based solely on current understanding of conventional neurotransmitter function are unlikely to be substantially more effective or better tolerated than current treatments. Investigations of hypothalamo-pituitary axis function across panic disorder, generalized anxiety disorder, specific phobias and social anxiety disorder have produced intriguing findings but not revealed a consistent pattern of endocrine disturbance, perhaps reflecting differences in methodology and the nature and size of the clinical samples. There is a persistent need for large, prospective studies using standardized methods for investigation and data analysis (164 words).

Submitted for inclusion within Bluhm and Pariante (eds) Behavioral Neurobiology of Stress-related Disorders February 2014

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Acknowledgments

Hesham Yousry Elnazer receives a bursary from KSS Deanery to support his postgraduate doctorate studies. David Baldwin chairs the Anxiety Disorders Research Network (ADRN) within the European College of Neuropsychopharmacology Network Initiative (ECNP-NI), and the University Department of Psychiatry in Southampton receives funding from the ECNP-NI for administrative support designed to foster the further development of the ADRN.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Clinical and Experimental Sciences Academic Unit (CNS and Psychiatry), Faculty of Medicine, University of Southampton, Southampton, UK

    Hesham Yousry Elnazer & David S. Baldwin

  2. University Department of Psychiatry, College Keep, 4-12 Terminus Terrace, Southampton, SO14 3DT, UK

    Hesham Yousry Elnazer & David S. Baldwin

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  1. Hesham Yousry Elnazer
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  2. David S. Baldwin
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Correspondence to David S. Baldwin .

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  1. Department of Psychological Medicine, Institute of Psychiatry Kings College London, London, United Kingdom

    Carmine M. Pariante

  2. Family and Community Health Systems, University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio, San Antonio, Texas, USA

    M. Danet Lapiz-Bluhm

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Elnazer, H.Y., Baldwin, D.S. (2014). Investigation of Cortisol Levels in Patients with Anxiety Disorders: A Structured Review. In: Pariante, C., Lapiz-Bluhm, M. (eds) Behavioral Neurobiology of Stress-related Disorders. Current Topics in Behavioral Neurosciences, vol 18. Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg. https://doi.org/10.1007/7854_2014_299

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