Cortisol effects on autobiographic memory retrieval in PTSD: an analysis of word valence and time until retrieval

Figures & data

Figure 1. Memory specificity, i.e. number of specific memories retrieved (out of six cue-words, two of each valence) in response to neutral, positive and negative cue-words after placebo and hydrocortisone. There was a significant group by drug condition interaction effect (p = 0.002) and a group by drug condition by valence interaction effect. In the PTSD group there was an effect of drug condition (p = 0.01) but no valence effect, while in the control group there was a drug by valence interaction found, showing that the impairing effect of hydrocortisone on memory primarily affect responses to neutral cue-words (further details on statistical analysis, see Results section).

Table 1. Time (mean seconds/SD) until memory retrieval in the AMT in patients with PTSD and healthy controls.

Time until memory retrieval (s)	Placebo	Hydrocortisone
PTSD
Neutral cue-word*	15.7 (14.0)	12.9 (11.1)
Positive cue-word*	18.2 (12.9)	16.0 (9.6)
Negative cue-word	18.0 (13.3)	16.7 (11.7)
Controls
Neutral cue-word*	14.0 (10.9)	11.8 (9.7)
Positive cue-word*	16.2 (11.6)	12.9 (10.6)
Negative cue-word	16.2 (11.9)	19.6 (13.5)

Main effect of drug condition: p = 0.043, main effect of valence: p = 0.005, drug by valence interaction effect: p = 0.022; post hoc t tests over both groups: neutral cue words p = 0.024*, positive cue-words p = 0.008*, negative cue-words p = 0.34.