Citation

Tiwari A, Gonzalez A. Clin. Psychol. Rev. 2018; 66: 69-79.

Affiliation

McMaster University, Department of Psychiatry and Behavioural Neurosciences, Offord Centre for Child Studies, 1280 Main Street West, MIP 201A, Hamilton, ON L8S 4K1, Canada. Electronic address: tiwara3@mcmaster.ca.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2018, Elsevier Publishing)

DOI

10.1016/j.cpr.2018.01.006

PMID

29433843

Abstract

Childhood trauma exposure is a significant public health problem. While adult mental health consequences of such experiences are well documented, sex differences in both prevalence and severity are less understood. Sex-based differences in biological circuitry and physiological trauma responses are proposed to potentiate the differential risk for pathogenesis of mental health disorders among adults. This paper will provide a contextualized summary of neuroendocrine, neuroimaging, and behavioral epigenetic studies on biological sex differences contributing to internalizing psychopathology, specifically posttraumatic stress disorder and depression, among adults with a history of childhood abuse. This review concludes with a discussion of implications for trauma interventions and sex-based biopsychological research in violence prevention.

Copyright © 2018 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Language: en

Keywords

Childhood trauma; Corticolimbic system; Epigenetics; HPA axis; Internalizing disorders; Sex