Hair Cortisol Level as a Biomarker for Altered Hypothalamic-Pituitary-Adrenal Activity in Female Adolescents with Posttraumatic Stress Disorder After the 2008 Wenchuan Earthquake

The present study evaluated the accumulated changes in hair cortisol levels of patients with posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) attributed to the 2008 Wenchuan earthquake in China.Sixty-four female adolescents from two townships who experienced the earthquake were recruited 7 months after the disaster, including 32 subjects with PTSD (PTSD group) and 32 subjects without PTSD (non-PTSD group). Twenty matched adolescents were recruited from an...