Abstract
Background: Childhood trauma is associated with psychiatric disorders, yet the underlying psychobiological mechanisms that account for this link are not well understood. Alterations in cortical arousal may, however, play a key role in mediating this association. We hypothesized that childhood trauma would be associated with alterations in arousal during a task that required sustained attention and behavioral inhibition. Materials and Methods: Fifty-three healthy adults completed the Childhood Trauma Questionnaire which assesses physical neglect, emotional neglect, emotional abuse, physical abuse, sexual abuse, and denial of childhood trauma. These individuals underwent cortical (electroencephalography) and peripheral (heart rate, skin conductance responses, and salivary cortisol) physiological recordings at rest (eyes open and eyes closed) and during performance of a visual go/no-go (GNG) task. Associations between reported childhood trauma and physiological measures were determined. Results: Physical and emotional neglect were correlated with decreased left parietal tonic α band power during resting conditions and during the GNG task. Emotional abuse was correlated with decreased right frontal α band power during rest, increased θ band power during the GNG task, and cortisol at the end of the testing session. Physical and sexual abuse were correlated with delayed P300 latency and enhanced P300 amplitude during the no-go conditions of the GNG task. The denial scale was correlated with a decrease in θ and increase in α band power during the no-go conditions of the GNG task. Conclusion: The present study provides evidence that childhood trauma is associated with altered cortical arousal and that the pattern of this association is dependent on the form of childhood trauma experienced.
Highlights
IntroductionA significant association between childhood trauma and subsequent psychiatric disorder has been well documented (Briere and Runtz, 1988; Hirschfield et al, 1991; Millon, 1991; de Wilde et al, 1992; Gross and Keller, 1992; Kendler et al, 1995; Bernstein et al, 1998; Pynoos et al, 1999; Kendall-Tackett, 2000; Dube et al, 2001, 2003; Johnson et al, 2002; De Sanctis et al, 2008)
Alpha band power was increased during resting eyes closed (REC) compared with resting eyes open (REO) and the GNG task for frontal and parietal electrodes, as expected; that is, due to lack of visual sensory information and disengagement of thalamocortical networks
Our main findings were: (1) physical and emotional neglect correlated with decreased left parietal tonic α band power during resting conditions and during the GNG task; (2) emotional abuse correlated with decreased right frontal α band power during rest increased θ band power during the GNG task, and cortisol at the end of the testing session; (3) physical and sexual abuse correlated with delayed P300 latency and enhanced P300 amplitude during the no-go conditions of the GNG task; and (4) the denial scale correlated with a decrease in θ and increase in α band power during the no-go conditions of the GNG task
Summary
A significant association between childhood trauma and subsequent psychiatric disorder has been well documented (Briere and Runtz, 1988; Hirschfield et al, 1991; Millon, 1991; de Wilde et al, 1992; Gross and Keller, 1992; Kendler et al, 1995; Bernstein et al, 1998; Pynoos et al, 1999; Kendall-Tackett, 2000; Dube et al, 2001, 2003; Johnson et al, 2002; De Sanctis et al, 2008). As the association between childhood trauma and psychopathology is not restricted to any particular psychiatric disorder, it is likely that such mechanisms involve quite general aspects of mental processing As both hypo-arousal and hyper-arousal are associated with suboptimal responses to internal and external stimuli, and so impact negatively on behavioral performance, one possibility is that alterations in arousal play a key role in mediating the relationship between early trauma and subsequent disorder (Howells et al, 2012). Materials and Methods: Fifty-three healthy adults completed the Childhood Trauma Questionnaire which assesses physical neglect, emotional neglect, emotional abuse, physical abuse, sexual abuse, and denial of childhood trauma These individuals underwent cortical (electroencephalography) and peripheral (heart rate, skin conductance responses, and salivary cortisol) physiological recordings at rest (eyes open and eyes closed) and during performance of a visual go/no-go (GNG) task. Conclusion: The present study provides evidence that childhood trauma is associated with altered cortical arousal and that the pattern of this association is dependent on the form of childhood trauma experienced
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