C-reactive protein, Epstein-Barr virus, and cortisol trajectories in refugee and non-refugee youth
Links with stress, mental health, and cognitive function during a randomized controlled trial
Abstract
Experiencing childhood adversity has been associated with significant changes in inflammation, cell-mediated immunocompetence, and cortisol secretion. Relatively few studies have examined, longitudinally, alterations to inflammatory processes during adolescence, especially outside Western contexts; none have evaluated biomarker trajectories for at-risk youth in response to a structured behavioral intervention. The study conducted a randomized controlled trial evaluating the efficacy of a humanitarian intervention targeting stress-alleviation, with 12–18 year-old Syrian refugees and Jordanian non-refugees living side-by-side in war-affected communities in Jordan.
This research is part of the ‘Research for Health in Humanitarian Crises (R2HC)’ programme.
Citation
Catherine Panter-Brick, Kyle Wiley, Amelia Sancilio, Rana Dajani, Kristin Hadfield (2019) C-reactive protein, Epstein-Barr virus, and cortisol trajectories in refugee and non-refugee youth: Links with stress, mental health, and cognitive function during a randomized controlled trial, Brain, Behavior, and Immunity, 2019, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.bbi.2019.02.015.