Melatonin as a Chronobiological Marker in Health and Disease

  • Lennart Wetterberg
Chapter
Part of the NATO Advanced Science Institutes Series book series (NSSA, volume 65)

Abstract

The psychiatric literature has reported possible relationship between mental illness and time of day, season of birth and even lunar cycle. Many psychiatric patients e.g. with affective disorders cycle with more or less regularity. The modern life style has led scientists to study body rhythms in shift-workers, air-travellers across time zones and astronauts. The influence of rapid shifts in light-dark cycles and magnetic fields, social isolations and even weightlessness has been examined. In order to understand the effects of these changes there is a need for new markers for endogenous rhythms. Hormonal variations may be associated with boredom, withdrawl and irritability in healthy persons. Desynchronization, upsetting the circadian, circaannual and other rhythms may also cause fatigue, decreased performance, insomnia, anxiety, depression and other psychiatric and somatic symptoms.

Keywords

Sleep Deprivation Pineal Gland Melatonin Level Dexamethasone Suppression Test Melatonin Secretion 
These keywords were added by machine and not by the authors. This process is experimental and the keywords may be updated as the learning algorithm improves.
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Copyright information

© Springer Science+Business Media New York 1983

Authors and Affiliations

  • Lennart Wetterberg
    • 1
  1. 1.Department of PsychiatryKarolinska InstituteStockholmSweden

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