Prenatal cocaine exposure, gender, and adolescent stress response: a prospective longitudinal study

Neurotoxicol Teratol. 2010 Nov-Dec;32(6):595-604. doi: 10.1016/j.ntt.2010.08.007. Epub 2010 Sep 17.

Abstract

Prenatal cocaine exposure is associated with alterations in arousal regulation in response to stress in young children. However, relations between cocaine exposure and stress response in adolescence have not been examined. We examined salivary cortisol, self-reported emotion, heart rate, and blood pressure (BP) responses to the Trier Social Stress Test (TSST) in 49 prenatally cocaine and other drug exposed (PCE) and 33 non-cocaine-exposed (NCE) adolescents. PCE adolescents had higher cortisol levels before and after stress exposure than NCE adolescents. PCE girls showed an elevated anxiety response to stress (compared to NCE girls) and PCE boys showed a dampened diastolic BP response (compared to NCE boys). Girls showed higher anger response and lower pre-stress systolic BP than boys. Group differences were found controlling for potential confounding variables and were not moderated by caregiver-child relationship quality (although relationship quality predicted HPA axis and anxiety response). The findings suggest that prenatal drug exposure is associated with altered stress response in adolescence and that gender moderates this association.

Publication types

  • Research Support, N.I.H., Extramural
  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Adolescent
  • Anxiety / psychology
  • Blood Pressure / physiology
  • Child
  • Cocaine-Related Disorders / complications*
  • Cocaine-Related Disorders / urine
  • Emotions
  • Female
  • Heart Rate / physiology
  • Humans
  • Hydrocortisone / analysis
  • Hypothalamo-Hypophyseal System / growth & development
  • Hypothalamo-Hypophyseal System / physiopathology*
  • Male
  • Pituitary-Adrenal System / growth & development
  • Pituitary-Adrenal System / physiopathology*
  • Pregnancy
  • Prenatal Exposure Delayed Effects / chemically induced
  • Prenatal Exposure Delayed Effects / physiopathology
  • Prenatal Exposure Delayed Effects / psychology*
  • Prospective Studies
  • Saliva / chemistry
  • Sex Characteristics*
  • Social Class
  • Stress, Psychological / metabolism
  • Stress, Psychological / physiopathology*
  • Surveys and Questionnaires

Substances

  • Hydrocortisone