Association between childhood trauma and physical disorders among adults in the United States

Renée D. Goodwin · Murray B. Stein

361 citations0/0 files storedPsychological Medicine

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Child Abuse and Trauma Intimate Partner and Family Violence Military, Security, and Education Studies

Abstract

BACKGROUND: The goal of this investigation was to determine the association between self-reported childhood trauma and physical disorders among adults in the United States. METHOD: Data were drawn from the National Comorbidity Survey (N=5877). Multiple logistic regression analyses were used to determine the associations between childhood physical abuse, sexual abuse, and childhood neglect and the likelihood of specific physical disorders among adults. RESULTS: Childhood physical abuse, sexual abuse and neglect were associated with a statistically significantly increased risk of a wide range of physical illnesses during adulthood. After adjusting for demographic characteristics, lifetime anxiety and depressive disorders, alcohol and substance dependence, and all types of trauma: results showed that childhood physical abuse was associated with increased risk of lung disease (OR= 1.5 (1.1, 2.2)), peptic ulcer (OR= 1.5 (1.03, 2.2)) and arthritic disorders (OR= 1.5 (1.1, 2.2)); childhood sexual abuse was associated with increased risk of cardiac disease (OR = 3.7 (1.5, 9.4)); and childhood neglect was associated with increased risk of diabetes (OR=2 2 (1.1, 4.4)) and autoimmune disorders (OR =4.4 (1.7, 11.6)). CONCLUSIONS: Consistent with previous work, these results suggest that self-reported childhood trauma is associated with increased risk of a range of physical illnesses during adulthood. Future research that includes replication of these findings using prospectively assessed physical and mental disorders with objectively measured biological data using a longitudinal design, including other known risk factors for these diseases and more detailed information on specific forms of abuse, is needed to understand the potential mechanisms of these links.

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References

1998Relationship of Childhood Abuse and Household Dysfunction to Many of the Leading Causes of Death in Adults 2001Child sexual abuse and subsequent psychopathology: results from the National Comorbidity Survey 2002Adverse childhood experiences and personal alcohol abuse as an adult 1988Symptomatology associated with childhood sexual victimization in a nonclinical adult sample 1994The Prevalence and Distribution of Major Depression in a National Community Sample: The National Comorbidity Survey 2001The long‐term mental health consequences of child sexual abuse: An exploratory study of the impact of multiple traumas in a sample of women 1993Childhood adversities and adult depression: basic patterns of association in a US national survey 2002Cumulative Abuse Experiences, Physical Health and Health Behaviors

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2006Disability and Poor Quality of Life Associated With Comorbid Anxiety Disorders and Physical Conditions 2013Review of somatic symptoms in post-traumatic stress disorder 2006Childhood trauma and emotional reactivity to daily life stress in adult frequent attenders of general practitioners 2009Trauma, Posttraumatic Stress Disorder, and Physical Illness: Findings from the General Population

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