Children who are physically or emotionally abused suffer in the long term. According to a study published in the American Journal of Psychiatry, the emotional problems and cognitive deficits found in these children are the direct consequence of areas of the brain affected by violence.
The study involves 3D images of the brains of more than 3,000 abused people, which were compared to those of 360 non-abused people. A wide variety of areas of the brains of abused people are affected, even in adulthood. “Child abuse acts as a stressor and produces a cascade of physiological and neurobiological changes that lead to lasting alterations in the structure of the brain,” summarizes Dr. Joaquim Radua, co-author of the study.
An increased risk of schizophrenia
Gray matter presents anomalies in several regions with varied functions, the study emphasizes: some govern sensory perception, emotions and dependence, others decision-making, language comprehension. In some cases, gray matter anomalies even affect the recognition of known faces, the context or even the identification of a social context! In one region (the parahippocampal gyrus), an abnormality is even associated with an increased risk of schizophrenia.
These abnormalities are found in all abused people, even those who have not received medication. This means that they are linked to the abuse, and not to the drug treatment that may follow.
The most affected areas are those that develop late. These results provide a better understanding of the emotional and cognitive deficits in patients abused during childhood.
They “underline the serious consequences of a harmful infant environment on the development of the brain. We hope that the results of this study will help to reduce environmental risks during childhood and to develop treatments which stabilize these morphological alterations”, concludes the Dr Nadua.
Mistreatment, according to the criteria of the World Health Organization (WHO), takes on very varied and sometimes insidious aspects. It is defined as any form of physical or emotional abuse, sexual abuse, neglect of any kind, commercial or other exploitation, which results in actual or potential injury.
