Childhood maltreatment confers long-term risk for cognitive impairment: A prospective investigation

Childhood maltreatment has been associated with greater risk for Alzheimer's disease and related dementias. Better understanding of this association will have implications for prevention and intervention efforts.

To determine whether individuals with documented histories of childhood maltreatment and matched controls differ in cognitive functioning in late midlife and whether maltreatment leads to higher rates of cognitive impairment.

Prospective cohort design SETTING: Metropolitan Midwestern county area PARTICIPANTS: Children with documented maltreatment histories and demographically matched controls were followed up into late midlife (N = 447, Mage = 59.4). Control group children were matched to maltreated children on age, sex, race and ethnicity, and approximate family social class during the time the cases were processed.

Children with documented cases of physical and sexual abuse and neglect during 1967 to 1971 in the county juvenile (family) or adult criminal courts. Cases were restricted to children ages 0-11 at the time of the maltreatment to ensure that the temporal direction of consequences was clear.

Using a comprehensive neuropsychological assessment battery, multiple tests of cognitive functioning and the Functional Activities Questionnaire were administered. Participants were categorized as having cognitive impairment with no dementia (CIND) or dementia.

Individuals with histories of childhood maltreatment performed worse on all 12 neuropsychological tests, compared to matched controls (Cohen's d 0.28 to 0.42) and had significantly higher risk for CIND [AOR = 1.86), amnestic CIND [AOR = 1.68) and non-amnestic [AOR = 1.48). About 13 % of maltreated individuals met criteria for amnestic CIND. Few met criteria for dementia. Males, females, Blacks, Whites, older and younger individuals, and those physically or sexually abused or neglected showed the effects of maltreatment.

Cognitive repercussions of childhood maltreatment continue into late midlife. Findings reinforce the importance of early detection and preventive interventions that may decrease risks associated with childhood maltreatment in later adulthood. Because we use documented court cases from childhood, this design reduces potential biases associated with reliance on retrospective self-reports of childhood adversities. To our knowledge, this is the first study to examine long-term consequences of childhood neglect for cognitive impairment.