Emotional and Adrenal Cortical Responses to a New Experience

Abstract

Recent human studies have indicated that elevated adrenocortical hormone levels may occur in novel, ambiguous situations.^1,2In 2 recent reports, we have pursued these observations by studying catecholamine and corticosteroid excretion in normal volunteers during the first week of hospitalization in a research unit.^3,4In 6 such groups we have found a tendency toward hormone elevation on admission day followed by a decline during the first week of hospitalization. In several groups, the difference in 17-hydroxycorticosteroid (17-OHCS) excretion between admission day and the end of the first week was quite substantial. The decline in urinary 17-OHCS was an orderly one, proceeding gradually throughout the week. This suggests that novel, ambiguous situations such as hospital admission may be used as an experimental tool in analyzing physiological concomitants of psychological stress. Moreover, such responses present a factor worthy of consideration in interpreting laboratory