Table 3.
Brain volumes and salivary cortisol concentrations
| Steroid group | Nonsteroid group | p | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Hippocampus right (cm3) | 2.58 ± 0.088 | 2.60 ± 0.093 | 0.87 |
| Hippocampus left (cm3) | 2.49 ± 0.079 | 2.47 ± 0.084 | 0.89 |
| Cerebral vault volume (cm3) | 1171.7 ± 37.4 | 1188.7 ± 39.6 | 0.78 |
| Global CSF volume (cm3) | 163.3 ± 11.5 | 158.0 ± 12.2 | 0.78 |
| Cort before placebo (nmol/L) | 5.0 ± 0.9 | 4.3 ± 0.9 | 0.66 |
| Cort before prednisone (nmol/L) | 5.4 ± 1.1 | 4.2 ± 1.2 | 0.53 |
| Cort 1 h after placebo (nmol/L) | 4.2 ± 1.1 | 5.7 ± 1.2 | 0.42 |
| Cort 1 h after prednisone (nmol/L) | 20.6 ± 3.5a | 17.5 ± 3.8a | 0.60 |
Data are presented as mean ± SE. Steroid group, Group with chronic prednisone medication; nonsteroid group, group without chronic glucocorticoid medication; Cort, cortisol concentration.
aThe cortisol immunoassay shows cross-reactivity with prednisone and its active metabolite prednisolone.