Patterns of salivary cortisol levels can manifest work stress in emergency care providers |
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| Authors: | Yasushi Nakajima Takayuki Takahashi Vivek Shetty Masaki Yamaguchi |
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| Institution: | (1) Biomedical Engineering and Robotics Laboratory, Graduate School of Engineering, Iwate University, Morioka, 4-3-5 Ueda, Morioka Iwate, 020-8551, Japan;(2) Department of Emergency and Critical Care Medicine, Tokyo Metropolitan Hiroo Hospital, 2-34-10 Ebisu, Shibuya-ku, Tokyo 150-0013, Japan;(3) Section of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery, UCLA School of Dentistry, University of California, Los Angeles, 10833 Le Conte Avenue, Los Angeles, CA 90095-1668, USA |
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| Abstract: | To develop objective assessments of work fatigue, we investigated the patterns of changes in salivary cortisol levels in emergency
care providers working extended work shifts. Fourteen subjects, comprising seven physicians and seven physician assistants,
provided unstimulated saliva samples at regular intervals over the course of a 24-h work shift and over their subsequent free
day. There was a significant time effect, with early morning cortisol levels being significantly attenuated following the
work shift. Native diurnal variations varied by gender, with the female subjects manifesting greater cortisol levels. Physicians
also had higher cortisol profiles even though their wake–rest cycles were similar to those of the physician assistants. Our
results suggest that temporal changes, as well as diurnal similarities, in the salivary cortisol patterns can reflect work-related
stress and recovery. In particular, early morning cortisol levels may manifest individual reactivity to work stressors as
well as sleep deprivation. |
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