Relationships among childhood trauma, posttraumatic stress disorder, and dissociation in men living with HIV/AIDS.
This study examined the relationships among dissociation, childhood trauma and sexual abuse, and posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptoms in HIV-positive men. Data were collected from 167 men enrolled in a randomized clinical trial that examined a group therapy intervention to decrease HIV-related risk behavior and trauma-related stress symptoms. Participants completed the Trauma History Questionnaire, the Impact of Events Scale-Revised, and the Stanford Acute Stress Reaction Questionnaire. Overall, 35.3% of the participants reported having experienced childhood sexual abuse. A total of 55.7% of the sample met diagnostic criteria for PTSD. The intensity of dissociative symptoms that participants endorsed was positively associated with experience of childhood sexual abuse (r = .20, p < .01). Dissociative symptoms were also positively associated with specific PTSD symptoms, notably hyperarousal (r = .69, p < .001). Hierarchical regression indicated that hyperarousal symptoms accounted for more of the variance in dissociation than childhood sexual abuse. These results suggest that childhood sexual abuse may be involved in the development of dissociative symptoms in the context of adulthood stress reactions. Furthermore, the pattern of the association between dissociation and PTSD is consistent with the possibility of a dissociative PTSD subtype among HIV-positive men.
Department of Psychiatry andBehavioral Sciences, Stanford University School of Medicine, 401 Quarry Road, Stanford, CA 94305-5718, USA. ckamen@stanford.edu
Charles
C
Kamen
Jessica
J
Bergstrom
Cheryl
C
Koopman
Susanne
S
Lee
Cheryl
C
Gore-Felton
D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D004213:Dissociative Disorders / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000209:etiology* / Q000523:psychology*; D006679:HIV Seropositivity / Q000523:psychology*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D011615:Psychotherapy, Group; D012044:Regression Analysis; D040242:Risk Reduction Behavior; D012742:Sex Offenses / Q000523:psychology*; D013313:Stress Disorders, Post-Traumatic / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000209:etiology* / Q000523:psychology*; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D016896:Treatment Outcome