Cortisol and testosterone levels in alcoholic patients in withdrawal syndrome

Overconsumption of alcohol is a strong stressor which stimulates hypothalamo-pituitary-adrenal axis and synthesis of glucocorticoids. Response of the organism to ethanol withdrawal is also the response to stress. Alcohol and stress hormones cause persistent neuroadaptive alterations which are capable to promote progressive course of alcohol dependence and relapse of the disease. Objective of study: to study cortisol and testosterone levels in alcoholic patients in the dynamics of the withdrawal syndrome therapy. Materials and Methods. The material of study was blood serum of 39 male alcoholic patients (withdrawal syndrome F10.3; mean age 46.6±10.0 года; duration of disease 10.6±9.2 years). Control group during biological investigations included 20 practically healthy men. Cortisol an testosterone concentrations in blood serum were measured with use of method of immune-enzyme analysis in the dynamics of withdrawal syndrome therapy: point 1 by days 3-4 of admission of the patient in the hospital after course of detoxification therapy, point 2 by days 12-14 of the therapy. Results. Alcoholic patients had increase in cortisol concentration in blood serum in comparison with control at all investigated stages of withdrawal syndrome, testosterone concentration in point 1. Catabolic processes of metabolism in patients predominated over anabolic and coefficient of correlation of cortisol concentration to testosterone concentration (C/T) to the end of term of observation exceeded twice the respective indicator in the group of healthy men. Conclusion. Our findings about dynamics stress-releasing hormones in the process of two-week period of intensive therapy are the evidence of instable achieved therapeutic effect and high risk of the relapse of the disease. Cortisol concentration, C/T coefficient can be used as markers of assessment of efficiency of therapy of alcoholic patients.