Transgenerational effect of trauma in child and adolescents with anxiety disorder

Objective: Etiologic models of anxiety emphasize the importance of childhood trauma, stressful events, and genetic predisposition in recent studies. This study examines the relationship between the mother's trauma exposure, anxiety symptoms, and children's anxiety disorder. Material and Methods: The study included 43 patients of 6-18 years of age who admitted to the Child and Adolescent Psychiatry Outpatient Clinic. A structured clinical interview, Kiddie Schedule for Affective Disorders and Schizophrenia for School-Aged Children, Present and Lifetime Version (K-SADS-PL), State-Trait Anxiety Inventory for children, Screen for Child Anxiety Related Emotional Disorders were applied to the participants, Hamilton Anxiety Rating Scale, State-Trait Anxiety Inventory, Beck Anxiety Inventory, Screen for Child Anxiety Related Emotional Disorders- parent form and Posttraumatic Stress Diagnostic Scale were applied to the mothers. The demographic information, history of familial trauma were recorded. Statistical analysis was performed with SPSS 21.00. Results: The rate of anxiety disorder was 20,7 % in the mothers of the participants. 72,1 % of mothers reported lifetime trauma exposure and 37,7 % exposed to childhood trauma. There was a relationship between the mother's diagnosis of Anxiety Disorder and the level of anxiety in the mother and child. Both the presence of anxiety disorder and lifetime trauma exposure in the mother were associated with the mother's PTSD symptoms and the level of anxiety in the child reported by the mother. Interestingly, traumatic findings of the mother were significantly associated with the psychiatric diagnosis of the father. Conclusions: We demonstrated that trauma exposure of the mother in childhood and young adulthood affects the anxiety level of the child more than her lifetime trauma exposure. Also, our study is important, because it is the first study to support the intergenerational effect hypothesis of trauma in the development of anxiety disorder in children in Turkey. Key Words: Transgenerational trauma, anxiety disorder, childhood trauma, lifetime trauma