Adverse childhood experience and rheumatic diseases

Area of Science:

• Rheumatology
• Psychoneuroimmunology
• Epidemiology

Background:

• Childhood maltreatment may disrupt adaptive stress responses.
• The link between adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) and rheumatic diseases requires further investigation.

Purpose of the Study:

• To determine if the number of ACEs influences susceptibility to systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE), spondyloarthritis (SpA), scleroderma (SSc), and rheumatoid arthritis (RA).

Main Methods:

• A questionnaire assessing ACEs (childhood abuse, neglect, domestic violence, household dysfunction) was administered to 315 patients with rheumatic diseases and 272 controls.
• ACE scores ranged from 0 (best) to 8 (worst).

Main Results:

• Patients and controls showed no significant difference in the median number of ACEs (3 for both groups).
• The proportion of individuals with an ACE score of 3 or higher did not differ between patients (63.8%) and controls (59.9%).
• No significant differences in ACE scores or the prevalence of high ACE scores were observed among patients with different rheumatic diseases or compared to controls, although a trend suggested an association between higher ACE scores and RA susceptibility (p=0.06).

Conclusions:

• The occurrence of ACEs was not associated with increased susceptibility to SLE, SpA, SSc, or RA in adulthood.
• Childhood adversity does not appear to be a significant risk factor for developing these specific rheumatic diseases.