Many lines of evidence suggest a link between childhood trauma and bipolar disorder, and a worsening clinical course of bipolar disorder.1,2 However, there are methodological differences between studies, such as the techniques used to question people about childhood trauma, that make synthesis of the available data challenging.2 Many different scales of childhood trauma exist, including questionnaires such as the Childhood Trauma Questionnaire (CTQ), and interview techniques.2 Furthermore, there could be proxy factors that mediate any relationship – more thorough research is needed to disentangle childhood trauma from other factors associated with mood disorders, such as substance abuse.2
References:
1. Aas M, Henry C, Andreassen OA, et al. The role of childhood trauma in bipolar disorders. Int J Bipolar Disord 2016; 4 (1):
2. Daruy-Filho L, Brietzke E, Lafer B, Grassi-Oliveira R. Childhood maltreatment and clinical outcomes of bipolar disorder. Acta Psychiatr Scand 2011; 124 (6): 427–434.
3. Janiri D, Sani G, Danese E, et al. Childhood traumatic experiences of patients with bipolar disorder type I and type II. J Affect Disord 2015; 175: 92–97.