HIV-1 Infection, Injecting Drug Use, and Neuroendocrine Response to Psychological Stress

Abstract

Stress-induced change in neuroendocrine markers is a widely-used index of ANS function [7,8]. In an earlier study [2], we used the cold pressor test to study changes in plasma catecholamines in persons in the early stages of HIV infection. In this test, persons are asked to place one of their hands in an ice water bath for 1 to 2 minutes. Levels of plasma catecholamines are then studied over the next 5 to 10 minutes. This study suggested that persons in the early stages of HIV infection showed a blunted response to cold pressor stress, with lower norepinephrine levels at all time points after the stressor. In addition, results showed that a larger proportion of HIV+ individuals attained their peak norepinephrine response in the first time period