| 1. |
- Bauer, Ilena, et al.
(författare)
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Acute relaxation during pregnancy leads to a reduction in maternal electrodermal activity and self-reported stress levels
- 2021
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Ingår i: BMC Pregnancy and Childbirth. - : BioMed Central (BMC). - 1471-2393 .- 1471-2393. ; 21:1
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Background Prenatal maternal stress can have adverse effects on birth outcomes and fetal development. Relaxation techniques have been examined as potential countermeasures. This study investigates different relaxation techniques and their effect on self-reported stress levels and physiological stress levels in pregnant women. Methods In this cross-sectional study, 38 pregnant women in their 30th to 40th gestational week were assigned to one of three, 20-min lasting relaxation groups: listening to music (N = 12), following a guided imagery (N = 12) or resting (N = 12). The intervention, i.e., acute relaxation (music, guided imagery or resting) took place once for each study participant. Study inclusion criteria were age over 18 years, German speaking, singleton and uncomplicated pregnancy during the 30th and 40th week of gestation. The stress levels were determined during the study. Current stress level during the study was assessed by a visual analogue scale. Chronic stress levels were assessed by the Trier Inventory of Chronic Stress and the Pregnancy Distress questionnaire. Multivariate analyses of covariance were performed and dependent measures included stress levels as well as physiological measures, i.e., cardiovascular activity (electrocardiogram) and skin conductance levels. Results All three forms of relaxation led to reduced maternal stress which manifested itself in significantly decreased skin conductance, F(3,94) = 18.011, p = .001, eta(2)(p) = .365, and subjective stress levels after the interventions with no significant group difference. Post-intervention stress ratings were further affected by gestational age, with less subjective relaxation in women later in gestation, F (1, 34)=4.971, p = .032, eta(2)(p) = .128. Conclusion Independent of relaxation technique, single, 20-min relaxation intervention (music, guided imagery or resting) can significantly reduce maternal stress. Notably, women at an earlier stage in their pregnancy reported higher relaxation after the intervention than women later in gestation. Hence, gestational age may influence perceived stress levels and should be considered when evaluating relaxation or stress management interventions during pregnancy.
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| 2. |
- Bürger, Zoe, et al.
(författare)
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Association of levonorgestrel intrauterine devices with stress reactivity, mental health, quality of life and sexual functioning : A systematic review
- 2021
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Ingår i: Frontiers in Neuroendocrinology. - : Frontiers Media S.A.. - 0091-3022 .- 1095-6808. ; 63
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Forskningsöversikt (refereegranskat)abstract
- Levonorgestrel-intrauterine-devices (LNG-IUD) are one of the most used contraceptive methods worldwide. While several reviews exist on how LNG-IUDs impact physiology and gynaecological functions, this systematic review focuses on stress, mental health, quality of life, sexual functioning, and effects on brain architecture. While data on stress is scarce, results on mental health are ambiguous. More consistently, LNG-IUD use seems to improve quality of life and sexual functioning. No studies highlighting the consequences of LNG-IUD use on the brain were found. The reviewed studies are characterized by a substantial variation in approaches, participant groups, and study quality. More high-quality research assessing the effects of LNG-IUD on mental health, including response to stressors and brain function and structure, is needed to identify women vulnerable to adverse effects of LNG-IUD, also in comparison to oral contraceptives, and to empower women to make more informed choices concerning hormonal contraception.
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| 3. |
- Derntl, Birgit, et al.
(författare)
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Estradiol modulates changes in effective connectivity in emotion regulation networks
- 2024
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Ingår i: Psychoneuroendocrinology. - : Elsevier. - 0306-4530 .- 1873-3360. ; 167
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Hormonal changes in ovarian hormones like estradiol (E2) during the menstrual cycle affect emotional processes, including emotion recognition, memory, and regulation. So far, the neural underpinnings of the effect of E2 on emotional experience have been investigated using task-based functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) and functional connectivity. In the present study, we examined whether the intrinsic network dynamics at rest (i. e., directed effective connectivity) related to emotion regulation are (1) modulated by E2 levels and (2) linked to behavioral emotion regulation ability. Hence, 29 naturally cycling women participated in two resting-state fMRI scans in their early follicular phase after being administered a placebo or an E2 valerate, respectively. Emotion regulation ability was assessed using a standard emotion regulation task in which participants were asked to down-regulate their emotions in response to negative images. The regions of two functionally predefined neural networks related to emotional down-regulation and reactivity were used to investigate effective connectivity at rest using spectral dynamic causal modelling. We found that E2, compared to placebo, resulted in changes in effective connectivity in both networks. In the regulation network, prefrontal regions showed distinct connectivity in the E2 compared to the placebo condition, while mixed results evolved in the emotional reactivity network. Stepwise regressions revealed that in the E2 condition a connection from the parietal to the prefrontal cortex predicted regulation ability. Our results demonstrate that E2 levels influence effective connectivity in networks underlying emotion regulation and emotional reactivity. Thus, E2 and its potential modification via hormonal administration may play a supporting role in the treatment of mental disorders that show a dysregulation of emotions.
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| 4. |
- Dubol, Manon, et al.
(författare)
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Neuroimaging the menstrual cycle : A multimodal systematic review
- 2021
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Ingår i: Frontiers in neuroendocrinology (Print). - : Frontiers Media S.A.. - 0091-3022 .- 1095-6808. ; 60
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Increasing evidence indicates that ovarian hormones affect brain structure, chemistry and function of women in their reproductive age, potentially shaping their behavior and mental health. Throughout the reproductive years, estrogens and progesterone levels fluctuate across the menstrual cycle and can modulate neural circuits involved in affective and cognitive processes. Here, we review seventy-seven neuroimaging studies and provide a comprehensive and data-driven evaluation of the accumulating evidence on brain plasticity associated with endogenous ovarian hormone fluctuations in naturally cycling women (n = 1304). The results particularly suggest modulatory effects of ovarian hormones fluctuations on the reactivity and structure of cortico-limbic brain regions. These findings highlight the importance of performing multimodal neuroimaging studies on neural correlates of systematic ovarian hormone fluctuations in naturally cycling women based on careful menstrual cycle staging.
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| 5. |
- Immenschuh, Jana, et al.
(författare)
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Reward-driven decision-making in females: The influence of sex hormones and nicotine on the Iowa Gambling Task
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Annan publikation (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
- The impact of the menstrual cycle phase and nicotine on reward-based decision-making is an understudied area in women. Nevertheless, the sex hormones estradiol and progesterone have been implicated in cognitive functions and seem to affect the dopaminergic system. Likewise does acute nicotine exposure have an effect on the dopaminergic system and has shown to positively affect cognition in non-smoking individuals. Here, the effect of menstrual cycle phase and nicotine, as well as their interaction, on reward-based decision-making was investigated in healthy young women. The Iowa gambling task, as a measure for reward-based decision-making, was performed in two menstrual cycles during the same cycle phase. Once the task was performed under baseline conditions and a second time after acute exposure to 1 mg of nicotine. At baseline, a lower risk-taking behavior was observed in the late follicular phase (high estradiol levels) than in the midfollicular phase. Acute exposure to nicotine heightened the risk-taking behavior compared to the baseline condition only in the late follicular phase. Overall, these results suggest that estradiol is able to modulate the pathways involved in reward-based decision-making. Furthermore, nicotine seems to affect this cognitive function in a menstrual cycle phase-specific manner, suggesting an interaction between estradiol and nicotine.
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| 6. |
- Kimmig, Ann-Christin Sophie, et al.
(författare)
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Friend vs. Foe : Cognitive and Affective Empathy in Women With Different Hormonal States
- 2021
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Ingår i: Frontiers in Neuroscience. - : Frontiers Media S.A.. - 1662-4548 .- 1662-453X. ; 15
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Empathy is crucial for social functioning as well as social coherence. It can be influenced by modulatory factors such as familiarity and liking (i.e., emotional closeness). Furthermore, there are first hints that hormonal status may modulate affective but not cognitive empathy in women. The aim of this study was to investigate potential separate as well as combined modulatory effects of emotional closeness and hormonal status on female cognitive and affective empathy. Three hormonal status groups of women (n = 62) were studied: (1) naturally-cycling (NC) women in the early follicular phase (fNC), (2) NC women during periovulatory phase (oNC), and (3) oral contraceptive (OC) users. All women underwent a newly developed empathy task (i.e., Tubinger Empathy Test, TET) presenting textual descriptions of positive and negative emotional scenes relating to three different perspectives (i.e., self vs. friend vs. enemy/disliked person). Regardless of hormonal status, empathic responses were higher for the friend compared to the enemy perspective for both empathy components. However, cognitive empathy was less affected by varying emotional closeness toward the target person than affective empathy. Hormonal status modulated only affective empathy. OC users showed significantly less affective empathy toward the enemy compared to the fNC women. Overall, affective empathy seems more sensitive to modulatory effects of emotional closeness and hormonal status than cognitive empathy. Possible implications of this current investigation for future research on empathy and OC use, contraceptive education as well as for other clinical applications are discussed.
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| 7. |
- Kimmig, Ann-Christin Sophie, et al.
(författare)
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Lower affective empathy in oral contraceptive users : a cross-sectional fMRI study
- 2023
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Ingår i: Cerebral Cortex. - : Oxford University Press. - 1047-3211 .- 1460-2199. ; 33:8, s. 4319-4333
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Evidence accumulates that oral contraceptive (OC) use modulates various socio-affective behaviors, including empathic abilities. Endogenous and synthetic sex hormones, such as estrogens and progestogens, bind to receptor sites in brain regions (i.e. frontal, limbic, and cerebellar) involved in socio-affective processing. Therefore, the aim of this study was to investigate the role of OC use in empathy. In a cross-sectional functional magnetic resonance imaging study, women in different hormonal states, including OC use (n = 46) or being naturally cycling in the early follicular (fNC: n = 37) or peri-ovulatory phase (oNC: n = 28), performed a visual, sentence-based empathy task. Behaviorally, OC users had lower empathy ratings than oNC women. Congruently, whole-brain analysis revealed significantly larger task-related activation of several brain regions, including the left dorsomedial prefrontal gyrus (dmPFG), left precentral gyrus, and left temporoparietal junction in oNC compared to OC women. In OC users, the activity of the left dmPFG and precentral gyrus was negatively associated with behavioral and self-reported affective empathy. Furthermore, empathy-related region-of-interest analysis indicated negative associations of brain activation with synthetic hormone levels in OC women. Overall, this multimodal, cross-sectional investigation of empathy suggests a role of OC intake in especially affective empathy and highlights the importance of including synthetic hormone levels in OC-related analyses.
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| 8. |
- Kimmig, Ann-Christin Sophie, et al.
(författare)
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No Evidence for a Role of Oral Contraceptive-Use in Emotion Recognition But Higher Negativity Bias in Early Follicular Women
- 2022
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Ingår i: Frontiers in Behavioral Neuroscience. - : Frontiers Media S.A.. - 1662-5153. ; 15
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Accuracy in facial emotion recognition has shown to vary with ovarian hormones, both in naturally cycling women, as well as in women taking oral contraceptives. It remains uncertain however, if specific - endogenous and exogenous - hormonal levels selectively impact recognition of certain basic emotions (or neutral faces) and if this relationship coincides with certain affective states. Therefore, we investigated 86 women under different hormonal conditions and compared their performance in an emotion recognition task as well as self-reported measures of affective states. Based on self-reported cycle days and ovulation testing, the participants have been split into groups of naturally cycling women during their early follicular phase (fNC, n = 30), naturally cycling women during their peri-ovulatory phase (oNC, n = 26), and women taking oral contraceptives (OC, n = 30). Participants were matched for age and did not differ in education or neuropsychological abilities. Self-reported anxiety and depressive affective state scores were similar across groups, but current affective state turned out to be significantly more negative in fNC women. Independent of negative affective state, fNC women showed a significantly higher negativity bias in recognizing neutral faces, resulting in a lower recognition accuracy of neutral faces compared to oNC and OC women. In the OC group only, negative affective state was associated with lower recognition accuracy and longer response times for neutral faces. Furthermore, there was a significant, positive association between disgust recognition accuracy and negative affective state in the fNC group. Low progesterone levels during the early follicular phase were linked to higher negative affective state, whereas in the peri-ovulatory phase they were linked to elevated positive affective state. Overall, previous findings regarding impaired emotion recognition during OC-use were not confirmed. Synthetic hormones did not show a correlation with emotion recognition performance and affective state. Considering the important role of emotion recognition in social communication, the elevated negativity bias in neutral face recognition found for fNC women may adversely impact social interactions in this hormonal phase.
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| 9. |
- Pitsillos, Tryfonas, et al.
(författare)
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Association Between Objectively Assessed Sleep and Depressive Symptoms During Pregnancy and Post-partum
- 2022
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Ingår i: Frontiers in Global Women's Health. - : Frontiers Media S.A.. - 2673-5059. ; 2
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Introduction: Sleep problems are common in pregnancy but many studies have relied only on self-reported sleep measures. We studied the association between objectively measured sleep and peripartum depressive symptoms in pregnant women.Material and Methods: Sleep was assessed using Actiwatch accelerometers in a sample of 163 pregnant women in the late first (weeks 11-15) or early second trimester (weeks 16-19). Depressive symptoms were assessed in gestational weeks 17, 32 and at 6 weeks post-partum using the Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale (EPDS). Multiple linear regression and logistic regression analyses, adjusting for age, BMI, pre-pregnancy smoking, ongoing mental health problems, trimester and season of sleep assessment were carried out to test the association between sleep and depression. Sleep was measured by total sleep time and sleep efficiency, whereas depression was indicated by depressive symptoms and depression caseness. Results are presented as unstandardized beta (B) coefficients or adjusted odds ratios (AOR) and 95% confidence intervals (CI).Results: Total sleep time ranged from 3 to 9 h (mean 7.1, SD 0.9) and average sleep efficiency was 83% (SD 6.0). Women with the shortest total sleep time, i.e., in the lowest quartile (<6.66 h), reported higher depressive symptoms during pregnancy (week 17, B = 2.13, 95% CI 0.30-3.96; week 32, B = 1.70, 95% CI 0.03-3.37) but not post-partum. Their probability to screen positive for depression in gestational week 17 was increased more than 3-fold (AOR = 3.46, 95% CI 1.07-11.51) but unchanged with regards to gestational week 32 or 6 weeks post-partum. Sleep efficiency was not associated with depressive symptoms at any stage of pregnancy or post-partum.Discussion: In one of the few studies to use objective sleep measures to date, mental health of pregnant women appeared to be affected by shortened sleep, with total sleep time being negatively associated with depressive symptoms in the early second and third trimester. This finding highlights the relevance of identifying and treating sleep impairments in pregnant women early during antenatal care to reduce the risk of concomitant depression.
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| 10. |
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| 11. |
- Rehbein, Elisa, et al.
(författare)
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Estradiol administration modulates neural emotion regulation
- 2021
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Ingår i: Psychoneuroendocrinology. - : Elsevier. - 0306-4530 .- 1873-3360. ; 134
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Variations of sex hormones during the menstrual cycle can lead to changes in emotion processing. The ability to successfully regulate one's emotions is associated with better social abilities and mental health. While women show better performance in fear extinction learning under high estradiol (E2) compared to women under low E2 levels, little is known about the effect of E2 on emotion regulation. We explored whether E2 modulates emotion regulation in a functional magnetic resonance imaging paradigm and administered E2 valerate to 32 young naturally cycling women during their early follicular phase in a double-blind, placebo-controlled within-subject design. This standardized experimental control allowed us to explore the specific effect of E2 on emotion regulation while controlling for other hormones varying throughout the menstrual cycle. Behaviorally, no difference between conditions appeared. However, on the neural level, E2 administration was associated with lower activation in the right lingual- and left calcarine gyrus, right orbitofrontal cortex and left hippocampus relative to placebo. With respect to the main effect of down-regulation higher activation of the right superior frontal gyrus and left dorsomedial prefrontal cortex was seen; which is in accordance to previous literature. An interaction between drug condition and emotion regulation appeared for the left inferior frontal gyrus extending into the middle frontal gyrus indicating lower activation during down-regulation in the E2 condition than the placebo condition. On the behavioral level, women reported less negative affect in the E2 condition. The results fit well to a previously described psychoneuroendocrinological model in which E2 plays an important modulatory role on emotional processes and risk factors of mental health in women.
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| 12. |
- Rehbein, Elisa, et al.
(författare)
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Pregnancy and brain architecture : Associations with hormones, cognition and affect
- 2022
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Ingår i: Journal of neuroendocrinology. - : John Wiley & Sons. - 0953-8194 .- 1365-2826. ; 34:2
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Sex hormones such as estradiol (E2) have long-lasting influence on brain architecture. Recent studies indicate further structural changes during hormonal transition periods including pregnancy, when women experience the greatest increase in sex hormone levels across their life span. In the present study, three groups of women (n = 44) with different levels of E2 underwent structural magnetic resonance imaging: (1) first-time pregnant women (n = 13, 'extreme E2 group'); (2), nulliparous, naturally cycling women who received 12 mg of E2 valerate (n = 16, 'high E2 group'); and (3) nulliparous, naturally cycling women receiving a placebo and hence low E2 (n = 15, 'low E2 group'). Blood samples were taken to assess hormonal levels. Moreover, parameters for cognition, emotion regulation and affect were assessed. On the neuronal level, the extreme E2 compared to the high E2 group showed a reduced gray matter volume in the left putamen. However, no significant differences were found between the low vs. high E2 groups, nor between the low E2 and extreme E2 groups. Cognitive performance was reduced in the extreme E2 group, although a positive affect was increased compared to the high E2 and low E2 groups. Furthermore, regression analyses revealed several associations between cognition, subjective measures of affect, emotion regulation and gray matter volume. A volume reduction of the left putamen during pregnancy further supports the notion that the female brain is shaped by hormonal transition phases, possibly preparing women for their future roles (e.g., pregnant women for their role as mothers).
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| 13. |
- Rehbein, Elisa, et al.
(författare)
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Shaping of the Female Human Brain by Sex Hormones : A Review
- 2021
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Ingår i: Neuroendocrinology. - : S. Karger. - 0028-3835 .- 1423-0194. ; 111:3, s. 183-206
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Forskningsöversikt (refereegranskat)abstract
- Traditionally sex hormones have been associated with reproductive and developmental processes only. Since the 1950s we know that hormones can have organizational effects on the developing brain and initiate hormonal transition periods such as puberty. However, recent evidence shows that sex hormones additionally structure the brain during important hormonal transition periods across a woman's life including short-term fluctuations during the menstrual cycle. However, a comprehensive review focusing on structural changes during all hormonal transition phases of women is still missing. Therefore, in this review structural changes across hormonal transition periods (i.e., puberty, menstrual cycle, oral contraceptive intake, pregnancy and menopause) were investigated in a structured way and correlations with sex hormones evaluated. Results show an overall reduction in grey matter and region-specific decreases in prefrontal, parietal and middle temporal areas during puberty. Across the menstrual cycle grey matter plasticity in the hippocampus, the amygdala as well as temporal and parietal regions were most consistently reported. Studies reporting on pre- and post-pregnancy measurements revealed volume reductions in midline structures as well as prefrontal and temporal cortices. During perimenopause, the decline in sex hormones was paralleled with a reduction in hippocampal and parietal cortex volume. Brain volume changes were significantly correlated with estradiol, testosterone and progesterone levels in some studies, but directionality remains inconclusive between studies. These results indicate that sex hormones play an important role in shaping women's brain structure during different transition periods and are not restricted to specific developmental periods.
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| 14. |
- Scheuringer, Andrea, et al.
(författare)
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Use of an estradiol-based combined oral contraceptives has no influence on attentional bias or depressive symptoms in healthy women
- 2020
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Ingår i: Psychoneuroendocrinology. - : PERGAMON-ELSEVIER SCIENCE LTD. - 0306-4530 .- 1873-3360. ; 113
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Combined oral contraceptive (COC) use is associated with small, albeit significant, increases in mental symptom scores, predominantly irritability, depressed mood, and anxiety. Yet, randomized prospective trials are needed to better characterize the women at risk for COC-induced negative mood change. Thus, the primary aim of this sub-study to a placebo-controlled randomized trial was to determine wheher COC use influences emotional interference by negative and positive stimuli. Secondly, we wanted to evaluate what factors would predict depressive symptoms at the end of the trial, taking personality factors, history of mental disorders and other demographic factors into account. Sixty-nine women were included, randomized to three cycles of treatment with a COC (1.5 mg estradiol and 2.5 mg nomegestrolacetate) or placebo. An emotional verbal Stroop task was used to measure interference of emotional stimuli, in which participants were asked to only name the color of a presented word, while ignoring the meaning of the word. Four different word categories were used; neutral, positive, depression, and anxiety. For the second aim of the study, rating on the Montgomery-Asberg Depression Rating Scale during the final days of the trial was used as outcome. We found no interaction between emotional verbal Stroop word category and treatment, indicating that COC treatment did not evoke any differences in emotional interference to the three word categories. Significant predictors for depressive symptoms at the end of the trial were trait anxiety at baseline and prior adverse mood effects by hormonal contraceptive use. Treatment (i.e. whether women had been treated with the COC or placebo) did not play a role in predicting depression scores at the end of the trial. In conclusion, we found no evidence that combined oral contraceptive use is associated with impaired cognitive-emotional processing. Instead, the main predictors of self-rated depression at the end of the trial were baseline trait anxiety and previous mental symptoms during hormonal contraceptive use.
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| 15. |
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