Relationship between childhood trauma and psychotic symptoms in patients with 1 schizophrenia: A cross-sectional study

Abstract Introduction: A complex interaction of both genetic and environmental factors causes schizophrenia. Childhood environment may interact with the social, behavioural, and cognitive antecedents of psychosis leading to mental illness in vulnerable population. Aim: To assess the association between childhood trauma and general psychopathology in patients with schizophrenia. Methods: The study had a cross-sectional design with purposive sampling with a sample size of 60. Patients with schizophrenia were assessed by Childhood Trauma Questionnaire-Short Form (CTQ-SF) and Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale (PANSS) for schizophrenia. Results: Childhood physical abuse was reported by 30%, emotional neglect by 31.7%, emotional abuse by 43.3%, physical neglect by 33.3% and sexual abuse by 23.3% of the study sample. 75% of subjects reported at least one form of childhood maltreatment. A significant positive correlation between Childhood trauma (Physical Neglect subscale) and PANSS (Positive symptoms) was found. The multiple linear regression analysis revealed statistically significant association of PANSS positive scores with physical neglect (β=0.60; 95% CI: 0.04-1.17, p=0.037), indicating that one unit increase in physical neglect score increased the positive symptom scores by 0.6 points. The final model showed good model fit with adjusted R2 of 0.096 (F stat=7.251, p=0.009). Conclusion: Childhood trauma and schizophrenia are related. Therefore, patients with schizophrenia spectrum disorders must be routinely asked about possible adverse childhood experiences.