Neurological Effects of Child Abuse

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Neurological effects of child abuse are consequences of physical, emotional, and sexual abuse . They have been shown to have negative effects on the neurological development of children . As stressors, they can influence the development of the brain .

Abnormal growth and development patterns in the brain caused by child abuse can lead to lifelong problems. Self-control, emotion regulation, memory, judgment, logical and moral thinking can all be impaired.

Affected brain structures

Neuroanalytical methods support findings that differences in brain structure and brain plasticity are significantly related to the experience of abuse in victims.

The corpus callosum is responsible for communication between the brain hemispheres and is significantly smaller in neglected and abused children, which can lead to inappropriate reactions to everyday situations.

Impairment of the development of the prefrontal cortex , that internal system of processing emotional states, logical and moral reasoning, has been linked to an increased predisposition to depression and criminal behavior.

The amygdala is responsible for the regulation of emotions and the development of fear . It is significantly smaller in victims of child abuse, which creates an increased risk of depression, irritability and aggression. Furthermore, it can lead to incorrect emotional memories, an absence of fear conditioning and an increased tendency towards psychopathic tendencies. In addition, impairment of the amygdala can lead to hypersensitivity to emotionally negative stimuli.

The hippocampus is an essential brain structure in the formation, storage and retrieval of memories, which is so impaired by abuse that victims of poorer performance in verbal memory tests are performed and possible ongoing mental problems arise in adulthood. Findings also suggest a link between reduced left hippocampal volume and child abuse.

The left brain hemisphere is responsible for the regulation and overview of the logical reactions to a situation, as well as the control and mediation of the emotional reactions that are generated by the right brain hemisphere. Victims of abuse can experience reduced control of emotional reactions due to abnormal developments, which can lead to bad or inappropriate reactions in emotional situations (e.g. in the form of outbursts of anger, self-destructive behavior, paranoia or psychosis ).

If the temporal lobe develops abnormally , it can lead to poor adaptation of emotions and an increased risk of temporal lobe epilepsy , as the regulation of emotions in the temporal lobe and verbal memory can be impaired.

The cerebellum is involved in the coordination and control of movements and motor components related to thinking, learning and remembering. Increased neuronal activity in the cerebellum was found in victims of abuse when hearing narratives of abuse.

If the production and release of neurotransmitters is disrupted or impaired in the cerebaral vermis (cerebellar worm), which also has a high number of receptors for stress-related hormones, the risk of psychiatric symptoms such as depression, psychosis, hyperactivity and attention deficits increases. Other findings show lower blood flow in cerebaric vermis in victims of abuse. Deficits in this region can also lead to affective and motor disorders.

The impairment of the so-called hypothalamus-pituitary-adrenal axis, which represents a change in the dynamics, increases the risk of depression and changes in stress reactions.

Problem of association with mood disorders

A major problem in research on the neurological consequences of child abuse is that the functional and structural changes caused by depression and post-traumatic stress disorder have often already occurred when they are examined. So the problem is to discover whether limbic impairments are due to childhood abuse, if they only occur in victims who develop an affective disorder in the course of their lives, or whether these changes are measurable and therefore promising indicators of vulnerability.

Individual evidence

1. ↑ ^{a b c} Lyzette Blanco, Liesl A. Nydegger, Giselle Camarillo, Dennis R. Trinidad, Emily Schramm: Neurological changes in brain structure and functions among worth individuals with a history of childhood sexual abuse: A review . In: Neuroscience & Biobehavioral Reviews . tape 57 , October 2015, p. 63–69 , doi : 10.1016 / j.neubiorev.2015.07.013 ( elsevier.com [accessed May 31, 2020]).
2. ↑ ^{a b c d e f g} Henry R. Cellini: Child Abuse, Neglect, and Delinquency: The Neurological Link . In: Juvenile and Family Court Journal . tape 55 , no. 4 , September 2004, p. 1–14 , doi : 10.1111 / j.1755-6988.2004.tb00169.x ( wiley.com [accessed May 31, 2020]).
3. ↑ ^{a b c} Udo Dannlowski, Anja Stuhrmann, Victoria Beutelmann, Peter Zwanzger, Thomas Lenzen: Limbic Scars: Long-Term Consequences of Childhood Maltreatment Revealed by Functional and Structural Magnetic Resonance Imaging . In: Biological Psychiatry . tape 71 , no. 4 , February 2012, p. 286–293 , doi : 10.1016 / j.biopsych.2011.10.021 ( elsevier.com [accessed May 31, 2020]).
4. ^ J. Douglas Bremner, Penny Randall, Eric Vermetten, Lawrence Staib, Richard A. Bronen: Magnetic resonance imaging-based measurement of hippocampal volume in posttraumatic stress disorder related to childhood physical and sexual abuse — a preliminary report . In: Biological Psychiatry . tape 41 , no. 1 , January 1997, p. 23-32 , doi : 10.1016 / S0006-3223 (96) 00162-X ( elsevier.com [accessed May 31, 2020]).
5. ↑ Uma Rao, Li-Ann Chen, Anup S. Bidesi, Mujeeb U. Shad, M. Albert Thomas: Hippocampal Changes Associated with Early-Life Adversity and Vulnerability to Depression . In: Biological Psychiatry . tape 67 , no. 4 , February 2010, p. 357-364 , doi : 10.1016 / j.biopsych.2009.10.017 , PMID 20015483 , PMC 2821020 (free full text).
6. ↑ Carl M. Anderson, Martin H. Teicher, Ann Polcari, Perry F. Renshaw: Abnormal T2 relaxation time in the cerebellar vermis of adults sexually abused in childhood: . In: Psychoneuroendocrinology . tape 27 , no. 1-2 , January 2002, pp. 231–244 , doi : 10.1016 / S0306-4530 (01) 00047-6 ( elsevier.com [accessed May 31, 2020]).
7. ↑ Christine Heim, D. Jeffrey Newport, Tanja Mletzko, Andrew H. Miller, Charles B. Nemeroff: The link between childhood trauma and depression: Insights from HPA axis studies in humans . In: Psychoneuroendocrinology . tape 33 , no. 6 , July 2008, p. 693–710 , doi : 10.1016 / j.psyneuen.2008.03.008 ( elsevier.com [accessed May 31, 2020]).

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