Evaluation of family training effect on salivary cortisol and behavioral symptoms in children and adolescents with Disruptive Behavior Disorder

Association between biological factors and disruptive behaviors in children and adolescents is important to investigate. Antisocial, aggressive and delinquent behaviors in adults often begin early in life. Basal cortisol is a valuable biological characteristic of children with disruptive behavior disorder (DBD). In this study the effect of family training on basal salivary cortisol in children with DBD was investigated. This is a clinical trial study. Basal salivary cortisol levels were studied in 19 children between 8-13 years old with DBD, before and 2 months after intervention (family training). The disruptive behavior of the child was assessed with child behavior checklist (CBCL). Cortisol levels and score of behavior were compared before and after intervention. Data was analyzed using descriptive statistics, paired t-test and pearson correlation. Salivary cortisol before family training was 7.9±4.6 nmol/L and after that was 10.46±3.84 nmol/L which was significantly different (p<0.001). Behavior score before intervention was 72.05±10.10 and after that was 49.361±1.89 that was also significantly different (p<0.0001). Children with lower basal salivary cortisol had a better response to intervention. Parent training is an effective method for behavioral modification in DBD. Salivary cortisol can be considered as a predictive factor for severity of disruptive behavior, also a factor to assess the response to parent training in children with DBD.