Exploring Reference Values for Hair Cortisol
June 2020
in “
Therapeutic drug monitoring
”
TLDR Hair sample weight is a better measure for cortisol levels in hair than hair protein concentration.
The study explored hair protein concentration (HPC) as an alternative reference value for hair cortisol concentration (HCC) compared to the traditional hair sample weight. Involving 18 hair samples, the research found that HCC correlated significantly with hair sample weight (r = .520, p = .027) but not with HPC (r = .393, p = .106). Additionally, hair sample weight was a better predictor of HCC (β = .520, p = .027) than HPC (β = .125, p = .657). The findings suggested that hair sample weight is a more suitable reference for HCC, though the cortisol-to-protein ratio could be an alternative if hair sample weight is unavailable.
