A Preliminary Study of Childhood Trauma and Patterns of Psychotropic Medication Use in Patients with Schizophrenia

ABSTRACT

OBJECTIVES: Experience of early childhood abuse elevates the risk of developing schizophrenia in later period of life, incidence of psychiatric comorbidity, symptomatic severity and complexity. In this context, we hypothesized that the pattern of psychotropic medication used would reflect this; those with childhood trauma will received more types and higher doses of psychotropic medication. METHODS: From our database of 102 outpatients diagnosed with Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fourth Edition (DSM-IV) schizophrenia, we analyzed experiences of childhood trauma measured by the Childhood Trauma Questionnaire-Short Form and types and dose of prescribed psychotropic medication. RESULTS: We found significant positive correlations between child sexual abuse and the number of psychotropic medications (p = 0.029) and between child emotional neglect and the number of psychotropic medications other than antipsychotics (p = 0.045). CONCLUSIONS: This preliminary study suggests that the pattern of psychotropic use may be affected by types of childhood trauma. Further studies will have to shed light on mediating factors such as symptoms or comorbid conditions that lead to prescription of certain psychotropic class.