It’s not unusual to hear people describe themselves as emotionally 'colder'

It’s not unusual to hear people who have undergone sympathectomies describe themselves as feeling emotionally “colder” than before. Among psychologists and neurologists alike there is concern, but no evidence, that the procedure limits alertness and arousal as well as fear, and might affect memory, empathy and mental performance. Professor Ronald Rapee, the director of the Centre of Emotional Health at Sydney’s Macquarie University, says he’s counselled several people who complain of feeling “robot-like” in the long-term wake of the operation. “They’re happy they no longer blush, but they miss the highs and lows they used to feel.”
(John van Tiggelen, Good Weekend Magazine, The Age and the Sydney Morning Herald, 10th March 2012)
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Saturday, 5 July 2014

Melatonin production abolished after sympathectomy

Cervical sympathetic nerves may affect blood adrenocorticotropic hormone (ACTH), cortisol (CS), melatonin or serotonin levels. We examined whether stellate ganglion block (SGB), which inhibits this nerve conduction, affects these substances.

During surgery, melatonin circadian rhythm and serotonin levels did not change, but melatonin increased only at night and serotonin decreased after surgery. These findings suggested that some stress stimuli are conducted via cervical sympathetic nerves to the hypothalamus, which is reduced by SGB, and to the pineal gland at night, which causes increased melatonin and decreased serotonin levels.
Authors: Iwama, Hiroshi; Son, Syoraku; Watanabe, Kazuhiro
Source: The Pain Clinic, Volume 13, Number 3, 2001 , pp. 233-244(12)
Publisher: Maney Publishing

Melatonin production abolished after sympathectomy


The amount of 6-sulphatoxymelatonin, the chief metabolite of melatonin, in the urine was measured in nine patients, who were subjected to
bilateral sympathectomy at the second thoracic ganglionic level for treatment of hyperhidrosis of the palms. All patients showed before surgery had a normal 6-sulphatoxymelatonin excretion with a peak in the excretion during the night time. After the sympathectomy, the high night time excretion 
was clearly abolished in five patients but remained high in four patients. This indicates that the segmental locations of the preganglionic sympathetic perikarya in the spinal cord, stimulating the melatonin secretion in the pineal gland in humans, vary between individuals. 
© 2006 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.
Molecular and Cellular Endocrinology 252 (2006) 40–45


Melatonin
Melatonin is an important immunomodulator and is the principal means by which tissues are synchronized to the daily cycle of light exposure and physical actity. Cortisol, on the other hand, is critical for maintaining energy homeostasis and modulating immune function. Melatonin and cortisol tend to run opposite to each other.
Deviations from the normal patterns for these hormones can have significant implications for overall health and future risk of cancer. In fact, research shows that low melatonin and high cortisol are independently associated with some of the same health conditions. 
Consequently, the balance between these two hormones is important to overall good healt. The melatonin-cortisol index (MCI)s an innovative way of examining the balance between these two vital hormones. The MCI may be used to assess cancer risk and immune function, and may also aid in the assessment of depression, heart disease, osteoporosis and weight management issues.
Melatonin | Rocky Mountain Analytical Lab
http://www.rmalab.com/index.php?id=61

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