Abstract
Objective To explore the relationships between psychological symptoms and thyroid hormone levels in adolescent girls who had experienced the traumatic stress of sexual abuse. Method The study design was cross-sectional/correlational. Subjects ( N = 22; age range = 12–18 years) had their blood drawn, and they completed 2 psychological tests (depression and general distress/posttraumatic stress disorder [PTSD]). A pediatrician completed a sexual abuse questionnaire after reviewing law enforcement and Child Protective Services reports and conducting forensic interviews and medical examinations. Results Girls’ average free T 4, total T 4, free T 3, total T 3, and TSH levels were within age-specific laboratory reference range limits, as were most individual concentrations. The strongest correlations ( p < .05) were between free T 3 and PTSD total score (−.50), PTSD—avoidance/numbing (−.49), and general distress (−.48); and between total T 3 and depression (−.46), general distress (−.45), and PTSD—arousal (−.44). Conclusions Our findings support one of the two contemporary models of the relationships between thyroid hormones (i.e., free and total T 3) and psychological symptoms (i.e., depression, general distress, and PTSD)—one of “shutting down” (vs. “activation”) in the face of trauma.
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