Salivary Morning Cortisol as a Potential Predictor for High Academic Stress Level in Dental Students: A Preliminary Study

Kacper Nijakowski, Dawid Gruszczyński, Kacper Łaganowski, Jagoda Furmańczak, Alicja Brożek, Marcin Nowicki, Dorota Formanowicz and Anna Surdacka
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Kacper Nijakowski: Department of Conservative Dentistry and Endodontics, Poznan University of Medical Sciences, 60-812 Poznan, Poland
Dawid Gruszczyński: Student’s Scientific Group in Department of Conservative Dentistry and Endodontics, Poznan University of Medical Sciences, 60-812 Poznan, Poland
Kacper Łaganowski: Student’s Scientific Group in Department of Conservative Dentistry and Endodontics, Poznan University of Medical Sciences, 60-812 Poznan, Poland
Jagoda Furmańczak: Student’s Scientific Group in Department of Conservative Dentistry and Endodontics, Poznan University of Medical Sciences, 60-812 Poznan, Poland
Alicja Brożek: Department of Medical Chemistry and Laboratory Medicine, Poznan University of Medical Sciences, 60-806 Poznan, Poland
Marcin Nowicki: Department of Medical Chemistry and Laboratory Medicine, Poznan University of Medical Sciences, 60-806 Poznan, Poland
Dorota Formanowicz: Department of Medical Chemistry and Laboratory Medicine, Poznan University of Medical Sciences, 60-806 Poznan, Poland
Anna Surdacka: Department of Conservative Dentistry and Endodontics, Poznan University of Medical Sciences, 60-812 Poznan, Poland

IJERPH, 2022, vol. 19, issue 5, 1-13

Abstract: Students experience different levels of acute and chronic stress during the academic year. Selected salivary biochemical parameters change as a result of stress. Our preliminary study aimed to indicate possible links between alterations in the salivary biochemical parameters (such as cortisol and total antioxidant status) and different accompanying stress levels in dental students during the academic year. The study group consisted of 20 volunteer dental students at the Poznan University of Medical Sciences—both genders, aged 20–26 years. Students were asked to fill in the electronic version of the author’s survey on experiencing and coping with stress. Samples of unstimulated saliva were collected in the morning and late evening at four-time points: in the middle of the academic year, during the examination period, at the beginning of the academic year, and in the middle of the following academic year, together with a determination of currently experienced stress on the Stress Numerical Rating Scale-11. According to the circadian rhythm of cortisol secretion, morning levels of the hormone in saliva were much higher than in the evening. In evening cortisol, significant differences were observed during the studied periods—the highest level was found at the beginning of the academic year. However, the morning cortisol concentrations correlated more strongly with the declared stress levels and showed better predictability for high-stress levels. Salivary morning cortisol could be a potential marker of academic stress levels. Further studies are needed on a larger group to confirm.

Keywords: cortisol; total antioxidant status; saliva; stress; dental students (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2022
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (1)

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