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Glucocorticoid-endocannabinoid interaction in cardiac surgical patients: relationship to early cognitive dysfunction and late depression

2012; De Gruyter; Volume: 23; Issue: 5-6 Linguagem: Inglês

10.1515/revneuro-2012-0058

2191-0200

Daniela Hauer, Florian Weis, Patrizia Campolongo, Mirjam Schopp, Andrés Beiras-Fernández, Claudia Strewe, Markus Giehl, Roland Tóth, Erich Kilger, Gustav Schelling,

Religion, Spirituality, and Psychology

Background: Endocannabinoids (ECs) are rapidly acting immune-modulatory lipid-signaling molecules that are important for adaptation to stressful and aversive situations. They are known to interact with glucocorticoids and other stress-responsive systems. Maladaptation to acute or chronic stress represents a major risk factor for the development of psychiatric disorders. In the present study, we administered stress doses of hydrocortisone in a prospective, randomized, placebo-controlled double-blind study in patients undergoing cardiac surgery (CS) to examine the relationship between the use of glucocorticoids, plasma EC levels, and the occurrence of early postoperative cognitive dysfunction (delirium) and of later development of depression.