Awakening Cortisol and Subclinical Cardiovascular Disease Markers in Police Officers: The Buffalo Cardio-Metabolic Occupational Police Stress (BCOPS) Pilot Study

Details

• Personal Author:
  Andrew, Michael E. ; Burchfiel CM ; Charles LE ; Dorn J ; Fekedulegn D ; Hartley T ; Miller DB ; Violanti JM
• Description:
  Police officers have an increased risk of job stress and cardiovascular disease. In the BCOPS pilot study awakening salivary cortisol levels were determined in 75 Buffalo, NY police officers (42 men and 33 women) to assess the association between a biomarker of stress and subclinical cardiovascular disease (brachial artery flow mediated dilation (FMD)). Saliva was collected immediately upon awakening and at three 15-minute intervals. A competitive chemiluminescence immunoassay determined cortisol level; results were expressed as area under the curve (AUC) above baseline and classified into gender-specific low, medium and high tertiles. Ultrasound measures of FMD were expressed as % change from baseline to maximal dilation. Analysis of covariance was used to estimate unadjusted and adjusted mean % change in brachial artery dilation across cortisol tertiles, stratified by gender. Adjustment for lifestyle factors resulted in a significant inverse trend (linear p = 0.017) in % brachial dilation across cortisol tertile levels in women, with the highest tertile having the lowest % brachial dilation (high = 1.7% vs. medium = 6.2% vs. low 5.9% dilation). No significant trend across cortisol tertiles was found in men (p = 0.79). Results suggest that female police officers with hypersecretion of cortisol after awakening may be more likely to experience impaired endothelial function. Potential reasons for gender differences include types and severity of job and personal stress exposure. [Description provided by NIOSH]
• Subjects:
  Biomarkers Cardiovascular Diseases Cardiovascular System Demography Law Enforcement Occupational Diseases Occupational Exposure Occupational Health Risk Assessment Risk Factors Safety Sex Characteristics Stress, Psychological

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• Keywords:
  Cardiovascular-disease Cardiovascular-system Cardiovascular-system-disease Demographic-characteristics Diseases Job-stress Occupational-diseases Occupational-exposure Police-officers Risk-analysis Risk-factors Sex-factors

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• ISSN:
  0002-9262
• Document Type:
  Text
• Genre:
  Abstract or Summary
• Place as Subject:
  New York ; OSHA Region 2 ; OSHA Region 3 ; West Virginia
• CIO:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH)
• Division:
  HELD - Health Effects Laboratory Division
• Topic:
  Workplace Safety & Health
• Location:
  North America
• Volume:
  163
• Issue:
  11
• NIOSHTIC Number:
  nn:20030999
• Citation:
  Am J Epidemiol 2006 Jun; 163(11)(Suppl):S210
• Federal Fiscal Year:
  2006
• Peer Reviewed:
  False
• Source Full Name:
  American Journal of Epidemiology
• Supplement:
  Suppl
• Collection(s):
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha-512:f274afa7a601d9bb32d45a14d6037681e7a82a1b6ec3b8f9153a4ce2ff6a9d5d316822714da0ede8b9845e501dcc39e1a71cbb341ae40c1fd677cc6eaa163915
• Download URL:
  https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/191405/cdc_191405_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 65.43 KB ]