Do affective or dissociative symptoms mediate the association between childhood sexual trauma and transition to psychosis in an ultra-high risk cohort?. (28th February 2016) - Thompson, Andrew
Abstract: We have previously reported an association between childhood sexual trauma and transition to psychosis in an Ultra High Risk (UHR) population. We aimed to investigate if this association was mediated by affective or dissociative symptoms. Data were from a large UHR for psychosis cohort study. None of the potential mediators (depression, anxiety, dissociation, mood swings and mania, assessed by the HAM-D, HAM-A and the CAARMS symptom scales) significantly mediated the total association between sexual abuse scores and transition. At the point of transition, the mechanistic pathway from sexual trauma to psychosis does not appear to operate through affective symptoms. Highlights: Sexual trauma was associated with onset of psychosis in a Ultra High Risk cohort. Depressive, anxiety or dissociative symptoms did not mediate this association. The mechanistic pathway at transition does not appear to be via affective symptoms.