The Timing Effect of Childhood Maltreatment in Depression: A Systematic Review and meta-Analysis

Abstract

Although empirical evidence has confirmed the causal relationship between childhood maltreatment and depression, findings are inconsistent on the magnitude of the effect of age of exposure to childhood maltreatment on psychological development. This systematic review with meta-analysis aims to comprehensively synthesize the literature on the relationship between exposure age of maltreatment and depression and to quantitatively compare the magnitude of effect sizes across exposure age groups. Electronic databases and grey literature up to April 6th, 2022, were searched for English-language studies. Studies were included if they: 1) provided the information on exposure age; and 2) provided statistical indicators to examine the relationship between childhood maltreatment and depression. Fifty-eight articles met eligibility criteria and were included in meta-analyses. Subgroup analyses were conducted based on subtypes of maltreatment and measurements of depression. Any kind of maltreatment (correlation coefficient [r] = 0.17, 95% CI = 0.15–0.18), physical abuse (r =0.13, 95% CI = 0.10–0.15), sexual abuse (r = 0.18, 95% CI = 0.15–0.21), emotional abuse (r = 0.17, 95% CI=0.11–0.23), and neglect (r = 0.08, 95% CI=0.06–0.11) were associated with an increased risk of depression. Significant differential effects of maltreatment in depression were found across age groups of exposure to maltreatment (Q = 34.81, p < 0.001). Age of exposure in middle childhood (6–13 years) had the highest risk of depression, followed by late childhood (12–19 years) and early childhood (0–6 years). Implications of the findings provide robust evidence to support targeting victimized children of all ages and paying closer attention to those in middle childhood to effectively reduce the risk of depression.

Cognitive factors as mediators of the relationship between childhood trauma and depression symptoms: the mediating roles of cognitive overgeneralisation, rumination, and social problem-solving

“…The relationship between childhood trauma and depression is widely recognised (Danese & Widom, 2023 ; Kuzminskaite et al, 2021 ; Souama et al, 2023 ; Watters et al, 2023 ). Li et al ( 2023 ) demonstrated that the risk of developing depression is heightened when individuals experience any form of childhood trauma, such as physical abuse, sexual abuse, emotional abuse, or neglect. A six-year longitudinal study demonstrated that individuals who experienced childhood trauma, particularly severe childhood trauma, exhibited notably elevated levels of depressive symptoms compared to those without such trauma (Kuzminskaite et al, 2022 ).…”

Struggling Can Also Show on the Inside: Current Knowledge of the Impact of Childhood Maltreatment on Biomarkers in Mood Disorderss

“…Childhood maltreatment that occurs during sensitive periods of brain development, such as early childhood or adolescence, may have a more profound and long-lasting impact on the brain and increase the risk of mood disorders, as seen from a review including 58 studies that found that age of exposure in middle childhood (6-13 years) had the highest risk of depression, followed by late childhood (12-19 years) and early childhood (0-6 years). 99…”

War exposure, post-traumatic stress symptoms and hair cortisol concentrations in Syrian refugee children

“…Previous studies have found that adolescents exhibit heightened HPA-axis responses to adverse experiences as well as diminished effectiveness of stress buffering by caregivers [56][57][58]. This in turn can lead to heightened risk for developing trauma-related mental health problems following exposure in adolescence [59,60]. Adolescence is an important time for the development of the HPA axis and accompanied by vast changes in steroid hormones [61].…”