Carson, Mary
(2021)
Childhood Maltreatment, Lifetime Traumatic Experiences, and Change in Inflammation Over Time.
Master's Thesis, University of Pittsburgh.
(Unpublished)
Abstract
Background: Trauma throughout the lifespan is associated with adverse health outcomes, potentially via inflammatory processes. Traumatic experiences in both childhood and adulthood are related to increased levels of inflammation. However, more work is needed to investigate how trauma relates to inflammation over time and to test how traumatic experiences in childhood and adulthood independently or collectively relate to adult inflammation.
Methods: This study tested relations between child maltreatment, lifetime trauma, and inflammation in a cohort of 298 peri and postmenopausal women aged 40-60. Participants were invited back 5 years later to participate in the ongoing follow-up study (n=170). Measures of child maltreatment, lifetime trauma, demographics, and a fasting blood draw were collected. Multiple regression analyses were conducted testing associations between child and adult trauma in relation to inflammation controlling for demographics, body mass index, and immune medication both cross sectionally and longitudinally. Moderation effects were modeled by interaction terms and tests for mediation utilized bootstrapping.
Results: 44% of women (N=132) reported some form of maltreatment and 60% of women (N=178) reported some form of lifetime trauma. At baseline, a history of child emotional abuse or physical neglect was associated with higher levels of IL-6 [emotional abuse: b(SE)=0.12(0.05), p=.046; physical neglect: b(SE)=0.12(0.06), p=.02]. At follow-up, a history of being in a natural disaster was associated with higher levels of CRP, while a history of being physically attacked was associated with lower levels of TNF- α [natural disaster: b(SE)=0.29(0.12), p=.04; physical attack: b(SE)=-0.37(0.10), p=.0002]. In longitudinal analyses, a history of being in a natural disaster was associated with a greater increase in IL-6 over time and experiencing the death of a child was associated with a greater increase in CRP over time [natural disaster: b(SE)=0.19(0.07), p=.007; death of a child: b(SE)=0.34(0.13), p=.009]. Analyses did not support independent, interactive, or explanatory relationships between child maltreatment, lifetime trauma, and inflammation either cross sectionally or longitudinally.
Conclusion: Trauma throughout the lifespan was prevalent in this sample of midlife women. Associations between childhood maltreatment, lifetime trauma, and inflammation were observed for specific subtypes of maltreatment or trauma, but were not consistent across time or immune marker.
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Details
| Item Type: |
University of Pittsburgh ETD
|
| Status: |
Unpublished |
| Creators/Authors: |
|
| ETD Committee: |
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| Date: |
3 May 2021 |
| Date Type: |
Publication |
| Defense Date: |
16 November 2020 |
| Approval Date: |
3 May 2021 |
| Submission Date: |
20 January 2021 |
| Access Restriction: |
No restriction; Release the ETD for access worldwide immediately. |
| Number of Pages: |
63 |
| Institution: |
University of Pittsburgh |
| Schools and Programs: |
Dietrich School of Arts and Sciences > Psychology |
| Degree: |
MS - Master of Science |
| Thesis Type: |
Master's Thesis |
| Refereed: |
Yes |
| Uncontrolled Keywords: |
Trauma, inflammation, midlife |
| Date Deposited: |
03 May 2021 15:38 |
| Last Modified: |
03 May 2021 15:38 |
| URI: |
http://d-scholarship.pitt.edu/id/eprint/40185 |
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