Background: Autonomic neuropathy (AN) commonly arises as a long-term complication in diabetes mellitus and can be diagnosed from heart rate variability (HRV), calculated from electrocardiogram recordings. Psychosocial stress also affects HRV and could be one of several confounders for cardiac AN. The present work investigated the impact of psychosocial stress on HRV in individuals with type 1 diabetes mellitus (T1DM) and assessed the use of salivary cortisol as a biomarker for psychosocial stress in this context.

Methods: A total of 167 individuals 6–60 years old (113 with T1DM and 54 healthy controls) underwent 24-hr ECG recordings with HRV analysis. Salivary cortisol was sampled thrice during the registration day. Perceived psychosocial stress along with other factors of possible importance for the interpretation of HRV was documented in a diary.

Results: Heart rate variability (high-frequency power during sleep) was reduced (p <.05) with older age, longer diabetes duration, higher mean glucose levels, physical inactivity, and perceived psychosocial stress. Salivary cortisol levels in the evening were increased (p <.05) in women in ovulation phase, in individuals with preceding hypoglycemia or with hyperglycemia. The amplitude of salivary cortisol was reduced (p <.05) with the presence of perceived psychosocial stress, but only in adult healthy controls, not in individuals with diabetes.

Conclusion: Psychosocial stress might be a confounder for reduced HRV when diagnosing cardiac AN in T1DM. Salivary cortisol is, however, not a useful biomarker for psychosocial stress in diabetes since the physiological stress of both hypoglycemia and hyperglycemia seems to overrule the effect of psychosocial stress on cortisol.