A plethora of cross-sectional studies suggest that psychological stress resulting from experiencing stressful life events (SLE) can result in an altered immune response. Potential maladaptive immune changes may outlast the event and affect the organism long after stress cessation. As a consequence, an increased vulnerability for immune-mediated pathologies (e.g. arthritis, diabetes) may develop over the life span. The objective of the present study was to monitor the longitudinal kinetics of peripheral white blood cells (WBCs; neutrophils, lymphocytes, and monocytes) in response to SLE. Here we present blood, hair, and behavioural measures obtained in the Dresden Burnout Study, at first visit (T1; N = 446) and one year later (T2; N = 173). Cumulative impact of SLE was assessed at T1 with the Life Stressor Checklist (LSC-R). Results indicate a significant increase in neutrophils (+2.8% per each 10 LSC-R points) between T1 and T2 in association with reported SLE. The change in neutrophils tended to correlate with the change in hair cortisol (Coheńs f = 0.6). We propose that SLE trigger immunological alterations that persist across time and thereby promote a continuous effect on WBC distribution. Such an effect might advance subclinical inflammatory processes, reduce an individualś immune defence, and promote a link between psychological stress and physical disease.
Keywords: Cortisol; Disease; Glucocorticoids; Hair cortisol concentration; Neutrophil/lymphocyte ratio; Neutrophils; Stressful life events; White blood cells.
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