A preliminary study on relationship between early awaking and serun cortisol in depression disorder

Objective To explore biological elements of early awaking in depression.Methods The plasma concentration of cortisol was measured by immunoradioassay in the morning in 59 depressive patients,and how many hours the depressive patients awake earlier than normal was evaluated.Results The plasma concentration of eortisol in the morning of early awaking group Was hisher than no early awaking group[(377.32±14.54)μm/L vs(324.15±16.44)μm/L,P＜0.05].There Was rectilinear correlation between the hours that the pafients awake earlier than normal and the plasma concentration of cortisol in the moming(r=0.353.P=0.006.n=59).There was linear regression between the hours that the patients awake earlier than normal and the plasma concentration of cortisol in the morning(β=0.006,P=0.006,n=59).Conclusion The high plasma concentration of eortisol in the morning probably leads to early awaking in depression. Key words: Depression; Early awaking; Cortisol