Vol 8, No 2 (2019)
Review article
Published online: 2019-04-04
The association between depression and diabetes — the role of the hypothalamo- -pituitary-adrenal axis and chronic inflammation
Abstract
Depression and diabetes belong to the most common diseases in the human population. Mood disorders
are often diagnosed in patients with chronic diseases, including type 1 and type 2 diabetes. Patients suffering from both diseases have been observed to have poorer blood glucose control, an increased risk of complications and mortality compared to the group with diabetes alone. The association between diabetes and depression is complex. Their frequent cooccurrence may be influenced by psychological factors, hormonal and immunological disorders. In depression,
hypothalamo-pituitary-adrenal axis dysregulation is observed, which causes peripheral hypercortisolemia. The excess of cortisol leads to hepatic glycogenolysis and reduction in insulin sensitivity of peripheral tissues. It has been proven that depression is accompanied by chronic subclinical inflammation. In this review we present the data regarding the relation between hypercortisolemia, subclinical inflammation and depression in patients with type 1 and type 2 diabetes.
Keywords: depressiondiabeteshypercortisolemiainflammation
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