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The impact of maternal childhood abuse on maternal and infant HPA axis function in the postpartum period
Open accessAbstract
Background Early life trauma, particularly child abuse, has been associated with aberrations in hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis functioning in adulthood. However, the relationship of early abuse and later adult neuroendocrine changes may be moderated by additional factors such as comorbid psychopathology and recent life stress. Parental exposure to child abuse may have transgenerational effects, with offspring of abuse victims showing similar neuroendocrine profiles as their mothers. The majority of previous studies in this area focus on adult offspring, and the degree to which the effects of parental child abuse can be detected earlier in the development of the offspring remains obscure.Methods The current study utilized a clinical sample of women with a history of MDD (N=126), to examine the effects of maternal early life sexual and physical abuse (Childhood Trauma Questionnaire (CTQ)) on both maternal and infant salivary cortisol levels during a laboratory stress paradigm at 6 months postpartum.Results Maternal child abuse was associated with steeper declines in cortisol in the mothers and lower baseline cortisol in their infants. Comorbid maternal PTSD, current maternal depressive symptoms, and recent life stressors were significant moderators of maternal cortisol change. Maternal abuse history was associated with increases in cortisol levels in those mothers who experienced these additional stressors. Similarly, a history of early maternal abuse and comorbid PTSD was associated with greater increases in infant cortisol levels.Conclusions Maternal childhood abuse was associated with HPA axis function in both the mother and the infant during the postpartum period.
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Metadata
- Authors
- Brand, S. R., Brennan, P. A., Newport, D. J., Smith, A. K., Weiss, T., & Stowe, Z. N.
- Affiliations
- Emory University (US)
- Corresponding author
- Brand, Sarah R.
- Venue
- Psychoneuroendocrinology
- Publisher
- Elsevier BV
- Published
- 2010-06
- Volume
- 35
- Issue
- 5
- Pages
- 686-693
- ISSN
- 0306-4530 (ISSN-L)
- PMC
- PMC2862800
- OpenAlex
- W2062341054
- Cited by
- 170
- References
- 38
- Citations by year
- 2026: 4 · 2025: 14 · 2024: 7 · 2023: 12 · 2022: 13 · 2021: 15 · 2020: 11 · 2019: 9 · 2018: 11 · 2017: 16 · 2016: 9 · 2015: 13 · 2014: 12 · 2013: 11 · 2012: 3
- FWCI
- 1.65
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- green
- www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov
- Locations
- Psychoneuroendocrinology (publishedVersion)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- Europe PMC (PubMed Central) (acceptedVersion)
- PubMed Central (acceptedVersion)
- Funders
- National Alliance for Research on Schizophrenia and Depression (MH58922, MH68036)
- Topics
- Life Sciences › Neuroscience › Behavioral Neuroscience › Stress Responses and Cortisol
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Clinical Psychology › Child Abuse and Trauma
- Health Sciences › Medicine › Public Health, Environmental and Occupational Health › Maternal Mental Health During Pregnancy and Postpartum
- Keywords
- hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis, postpartum period, salivary cortisol, infant cortisol, maternal depression, post-traumatic stress disorder, early trauma, transgenerational effects, life events, stress response, mother-infant dyads
- MeSH terms
- Adult, Depression, Female, Health Status, Humans, Hydrocortisone, Hypothalamo-Hypophyseal System, Infant, Infant, Newborn, Male, Pituitary-Adrenal System, Saliva, Stress Disorders, Post-Traumatic, Stress, Psychological, Postpartum Period, Adult Survivors of Child Abuse
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