Effect of childhood trauma on patients with schizophrenia

INTRODUCTION: Recent research shows that exposure to trauma, such as child abuse, may result in a heightened risk of developing schizophrenia and worsening of positive symptoms in schizophrenic patient. OBJECTIVES: The objective of this study was to examine the relation between childhood abuse and psychotic symptoms in patients with schizophrenia. METHODS: Participants were outpatients of Hedi chaker University Hospital Center in sfax, Tunisia, recruited between January and July of 2019, diagnosed with schizophrenia or schizoaffective disorder. The Childhood Trauma Questionnaire (CTQ-SF), the Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale (PANSS) were administered in this study to evaluate respectively childhood trauma and psychotic symptoms RESULTS: 44 patients were included in this study with an average age 39,81 ±9,7. The rate of emotional abuse was 15.9%, physical abuse 31.8%, sexual abuse 15.8%, emotional neglect 6.8% and physical neglect 18.2%. PANS positive score (r=0,59 ; p< 10(-3) ), PANS negative score (r=0,55 ; p< 10(-3) ) and PANS psychopathology score(r =0,45, p<0,002) were higher in patients who had a history of childhood trauma in comparison with those who did not report experiencing this. CONCLUSIONS: This study confirms that a history of Childhood trauma may have a serious impact in patients with schizophrenia.