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Child and Adolescent Psychiatry and Mental Health
Published in: Child and Adolescent Psychiatry and Mental Health 1/2016

Open Access 01-12-2016 | Research Article

Schizophrenia clinical symptom differences in women vs. men with and without a history of childhood physical abuse

Authors: Deanna L. Kelly, Laura M. Rowland, Kathleen M. Patchan, Kelli Sullivan, Amber Earl, Heather Raley, Fang Liu, Stephanie Feldman, Robert P. McMahon

Published in: Child and Adolescent Psychiatry and Mental Health | Issue 1/2016

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Abstract

Background

Childhood abuse has been implicated as an environmental factor that increases the risk for developing schizophrenia. A recent large population-based case–control study found that abuse may be a risk factor for schizophrenia in women, but not men. Given the sex differences in onset and clinical course of schizophrenia, we hypothesized that childhood abuse may cause phenotypic differences in the disorder between men and women.

Methods

We examined the prevalence of childhood physical abuse in a cohort of men and women with schizophrenia and schizoaffective disorder. Specifically, we examined differences in positive, negative, cognitive and depressive symptoms in men and women who reported a history of childhood physical abuse. We recruited 100 subjects for a single visit and assessed a history of childhood physical abuse using the childhood trauma questionnaire (CTQ) and clinical symptoms and cognition using the brief psychiatric rating scale (BPRS), the calgary depression scale (CDS) and the repeatable battery of the assessment of neuropsychological status (RBANS) for cognition.

Results

Ninety-two subjects completed the full CTQ with abuse classified as definitely present, definitely absent or borderline. Twelve subjects who reported borderline abuse scores were excluded. Of the 80 subjects whose data was analyzed, 10 of 24 (41.6 %) women and 11 of 56 (19.6 %) men reported a history of childhood physical abuse (χ2 = 4.21, df = 1, p = 0.04). Women who reported such trauma had significantly more psychotic (sex by abuse interaction; F = 4.03, df = 1.76, p = 0.048) and depressive (F = 4.23, df = 1.76, p = 0.04) symptoms compared to women who did not have a trauma history and men, regardless of trauma history. There were no differences in negative or cognitive symptoms.

Conclusions

Women with schizophrenia and schizoaffective disorder may represent a distinct phenotype or subgroup with distinct etiologies and may require different, individually tailored treatments.
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Metadata
Title
Schizophrenia clinical symptom differences in women vs. men with and without a history of childhood physical abuse
Authors
Deanna L. Kelly
Laura M. Rowland
Kathleen M. Patchan
Kelli Sullivan
Amber Earl
Heather Raley
Fang Liu
Stephanie Feldman
Robert P. McMahon
Publication date
01-12-2016
Publisher
BioMed Central
Published in
Child and Adolescent Psychiatry and Mental Health / Issue 1/2016
Electronic ISSN: 1753-2000
DOI
https://doi.org/10.1186/s13034-016-0092-9

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