INS NYC 2024 Program

Poster	Poster Session 10 Program Schedule 02/17/2024 09:00 am - 10:15 am Room: Shubert Complex (Posters 1-60) Poster Session 10: Neurodevelopmental \| Congenital Conditions Final Abstract #15 The Effects of In-Utero Stress Exposure on Stress Hormones Levels Associated with Clinical and Adaptive Behaviors in Young Children Claire Brabander, Queens College and Graduate Center, CUNY, New York, United States Christine Ginalis, Queens College and Graduate Center, CUNY, New York, United States Sheow Yun Sie, Queens College, CUNY, New York, United States Yoko Nomura, Queens College and Graduate Center, CUNY, New York, United States Category: Prenatal/Perinatal Factors/Prematurity Keyword 1: prenatal factors Keyword 2: hormones Objective: To investigate how in-utero stress exposure caused by Hurricane Sandy influences stress hormone levels in children. To assess the relationship between stress hormone levels on subsequent clinical and adaptive behaviors in children. Participants and Methods: The present study examines the children (subsample of N=253) of mothers recruited for a larger longitudinal study, the Stress in Pregnancy study. Mothers were categorized as either pregnant or not pregnant during Hurricane Sandy, and children born to pregnant mothers were considered to have been exposed to in-utero stress. Hair samples collected from children between ages of 2 and 6 were -analyzed for the steroid hormones cortisol, cortisone, and dehydroepiandrosterone (DHEA). Generalized equation estimate (GEE) incorporating multiple assessments of hair assay was used to assess the effect of in-utero stress status on the stress hormones and the cortisol/DHEA ratio, which has clinical significance in predicting psychopathology. Maternal age, marital status, and child sex were controlled for in the adjusted model. The study further evaluated the link between cortisone and DHEA in child hair to the neurobehaviors (both clinical and adaptive) using the parent report Behavior Assessment System for Children, Second Edition (BASC-2). Eight pertinent clinical behaviors (hyperactivity, aggression, anxiety, depression, withdrawn behaviors, somatic complaints, atypical behaviors, and attention problems) as well as four adaptive behaviors (adaptive skills, social skills, functional communication skills, and daily activity skills) were examined, after controlling for confounder effects. Results: Children exposed to in-utero stress exhibit significantly higher cortisone levels (p=.018) and cortisol/DHEA ratio (p=.005) compared to their non-stressed counterparts. However, no differences in cortisol (p=.430) or DHEA (p=.222) levels were observed between groups. Further results analyzing clinical and adaptive behaviors show that lower DHEA was associated with greater anxiety (p=.05) and somatic complaints (p<.001), as well as poorer functional communication (p<.001) and activities in daily life (p=.009). Conclusions: These results show that in-utero stress exposure due to a natural disaster impacts child stress hormone levels, notably elevating cortisone and the cortisol/DHEA ratio. Any changes in the cortisol/DHEA ratio following in-utero stress are clinically important, as an altered ratio is implicated in various psychopathologies. Since cortisol and DHEA play opposing roles in the stress response, an imbalance of these hormones may impact the stress response even though cortisol and DHEA levels alone are not significantly altered following in-utero stress. Lower DHEA levels were also associated with increased anxiety and somatic complaints as well as poorer functional communication and activities in daily life, which suggests that altered hormone levels may be an underlying mechanism of increased clinical and decreased adaptive behaviors. Taken together, these findings suggest that examining steroid hormones, especially cortisone and DHEA in hair could serve biomarkers for emerging neurobehavioral impairment in children exposed to natural disaster stress in-utero. These findings help us understand the physical effects of in-utero stress and provide ways to support early intervention, contributing to our understanding of the long-term impact of prenatal adversity exposure.

Poster

02/17/2024
09:00 am - 10:15 am
Room: Shubert Complex (Posters 1-60)

Poster Session 10: Neurodevelopmental | Congenital Conditions

Final Abstract #15

The Effects of In-Utero Stress Exposure on Stress Hormones Levels Associated with Clinical and Adaptive Behaviors in Young Children

Claire Brabander, Queens College and Graduate Center, CUNY, New York, United States
Christine Ginalis, Queens College and Graduate Center, CUNY, New York, United States
Sheow Yun Sie, Queens College, CUNY, New York, United States
Yoko Nomura, Queens College and Graduate Center, CUNY, New York, United States

Category: Prenatal/Perinatal Factors/Prematurity

Keyword 1: prenatal factors
Keyword 2: hormones

Objective:

To investigate how in-utero stress exposure caused by Hurricane Sandy influences stress hormone levels in children. To assess the relationship between stress hormone levels on subsequent clinical and adaptive behaviors in children.

Participants and Methods:

The present study examines the children (subsample of N=253) of mothers recruited for a larger longitudinal study, the Stress in Pregnancy study. Mothers were categorized as either pregnant or not pregnant during Hurricane Sandy, and children born to pregnant mothers were considered to have been exposed to in-utero stress. Hair samples collected from children between ages of 2 and 6 were -analyzed for the steroid hormones cortisol, cortisone, and dehydroepiandrosterone (DHEA). Generalized equation estimate (GEE) incorporating multiple assessments of hair assay was used to assess the effect of in-utero stress status on the stress hormones and the cortisol/DHEA ratio, which has clinical significance in predicting psychopathology. Maternal age, marital status, and child sex were controlled for in the adjusted model. The study further evaluated the link between cortisone and DHEA in child hair to the neurobehaviors (both clinical and adaptive) using the parent report Behavior Assessment System for Children, Second Edition (BASC-2). Eight pertinent clinical behaviors (hyperactivity, aggression, anxiety, depression, withdrawn behaviors, somatic complaints, atypical behaviors, and attention problems) as well as four adaptive behaviors (adaptive skills, social skills, functional communication skills, and daily activity skills) were examined, after controlling for confounder effects.

Results:

Children exposed to in-utero stress exhibit significantly higher cortisone levels (p=.018) and cortisol/DHEA ratio (p=.005) compared to their non-stressed counterparts. However, no differences in cortisol (p=.430) or DHEA (p=.222) levels were observed between groups. Further results analyzing clinical and adaptive behaviors show that lower DHEA was associated with greater anxiety (p=.05) and somatic complaints (p<.001), as well as poorer functional communication (p<.001) and activities in daily life (p=.009).

Conclusions:

These results show that in-utero stress exposure due to a natural disaster impacts child stress hormone levels, notably elevating cortisone and the cortisol/DHEA ratio. Any changes in the cortisol/DHEA ratio following in-utero stress are clinically important, as an altered ratio is implicated in various psychopathologies. Since cortisol and DHEA play opposing roles in the stress response, an imbalance of these hormones may impact the stress response even though cortisol and DHEA levels alone are not significantly altered following in-utero stress. Lower DHEA levels were also associated with increased anxiety and somatic complaints as well as poorer functional communication and activities in daily life, which suggests that altered hormone levels may be an underlying mechanism of increased clinical and decreased adaptive behaviors. Taken together, these findings suggest that examining steroid hormones, especially cortisone and DHEA in hair could serve biomarkers for emerging neurobehavioral impairment in children exposed to natural disaster stress in-utero. These findings help us understand the physical effects of in-utero stress and provide ways to support early intervention, contributing to our understanding of the long-term impact of prenatal adversity exposure.