Background and objectives: Burnout is a syndrome typically occurring in work environments with continuous and chronic stress. Physicians are at increased risk for burnout, as a result of 24-h work, delayed work–life balance gratification, and the challenges associated with patient care. The aim of the present study was to evaluate the psychological parameters of burnout symptoms in relation to biomarkers of stress among physicians with different medical specialties. Materials and methods: A total of 303 physicians were contacted as potential participants. A comparison group of 111 individuals working outside medicine was used as a control to verify the results. The physicians were specialists in internal medicine, general surgery, pathology, and primary care. Serum cortisol, salivary cortisol, adrenocorticotropic hormone (ACTH), insulin (IRI), and prolactin levels were analyzed by chemiluminescence enzyme immunoassay (Access 2, Beckman Coulter). Fasting glucose in serum and glycated hemoglobin (HbA1C) in whole blood were measured using the automatic analyzer AU 480 Beckman Coulter system. Symptoms of burnout were measured with the Maslach Burnout Inventory (MBI). Results: The group with burnout presented significantly higher levels of serum and saliva cortisol, ACTH, prolactin, fasting glucose, and HbA1C compared with the control group. The correlation analysis between biomarkers showed a positive correlation with moderate strength between serum and saliva cortisol (r = 0.516, p = 0.01),as well as serum and saliva cortisol with ACTH (r = 0.418; r = 0.412, p = 0.01) and HbA1C (r = 0.382; r = 0.395, p = 0.01). A weak positive correlation was found between serum and saliva cortisol with prolactin (r = 0.236; r = 0.267, p < 0.01) and glucose (r = 0.271; r = 0.297, p < 0.01). In the multiple logistic regression model, saliva cortisol, HbA1C, and age were significantly associated with burnout (chi-square = 16.848, p < 0.032). Conclusion: Our findings demonstrated the interest of exploring biomarkers of stress related to burnout in health professionals.

Introduction: Medical profession is a stress factor for the development of burnout, symptoms of anxiety and depression as a result of 24-hour work, delayed work-life balance gratification and challenges associated with patient care. Aim: This study aimed to verify the rates of burnout, anxiety, and depression presented by health professionals working 24-hour shifts under emergency conditions. Saliva cortisol and glycated hemoglobin were also studied as stress-related biomarkers. Materials and methods: Ninety-five medical professionals – physicians, biologists, chemists, and laboratory technicians were compared to a control group working outside medicine. Burnout was measured by the Maslach Burnout Inventory. Anxiety and depression were measured by the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory and the Zung Depression Scale. Salivary cortisol and glycated hemoglobin were analyzed by the immunoassay methods. Results: The level of burnout in the subscale of emotional exhaustion was high in 95.6% of medical professionals. In the subscale of personal accomplishment, 100% had high scores. Regarding the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory, 22.2% and 68.9% of the medical specialists showed a positive score (≥40) for S-anxiety and T-anxiety scale, respectively. 11.1% indicated greater anxiety (score ≥ 55) for T-anxiety. In relation to the depression scale, 31.1% had mildly depressive states and 8.9% had moderately depressive states. Participants with a high level of emotional exhaustion presented higher results for saliva cortisol and glycated hemoglobin compared to the control group. A significant positive correlation existed between the two dimensions - emotional exhaustion and depression (r=0.683, p<0.01). Conclusions: Our study may be relevant for further research in order to decrease the negative aspects of professional stress.