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Childhood trauma, personality disorders symptoms and current major depressive disorder in Togo

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Abstract

Purpose

Childhood trauma (CT) has been found to be associated with major depressive disorder (MDD) and personality disorders (PD) in adulthood in Western countries, but little is known about the relationship between CT, PD and MDD in sub-Saharan Africa. The present study aims to examine: (1) the frequency of the CT, (2) the association between CT, PD symptoms and MDD and (3) the mediating role of PD between CT and MDD in Togo.

Methods

One hundred and eighty-one participants (91 individuals with current MDD and 90 healthy controls without psychiatric history) completed the 28-item CT Questionnaire (CTQ) and the Personality Diagnostic Questionnaire (PDQ-4+).

Results

Participants in the MDD group reported more frequently emotional, sexual and physical abuse and emotional and physical neglect than controls (p < 0.001). There was a significant positive correlation between the total abuse and the PDQ-4 + score (r = 0.48, p < 0.01) in the total sample. Emotional and sexual abuses were associated with current MDD and the number of PD criteria endorsed. Furthermore, PD symptoms mediated partially the relationship between CT and current MDD.

Conclusions

Our results suggest an association between CT and current MDD in French-speaking sub-Saharan Africa, and that this relationship may be explained by PD symptoms. Prospective studies to confirm these results are warranted.

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Acknowledgments

K. B. Kounou has received a Ph.D. Grant from “Agence Universitaire de la Francophonie” within the Framework of this research. E. Bui was supported by a fellowship from the CHU de Toulouse. We thank Emefa Kwadzo for her translation assistance.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Université de Toulouse, UPS, Laboratoire du Stress Traumatique (LST-EA 4560), CHU de Toulouse, Hôpital Casselardit, 170 av. de Casselardit, TSA 40031, 31059, Toulouse Cedex 9, France

    Kossi B. Kounou, Eric Bui, Philippe Birmes & Laurent Schmitt

  2. Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, USA

    Eric Bui, Devon Hinton & Laura Fischer

  3. Harvard Medical School, Boston, USA

    Eric Bui & Devon Hinton

  4. Laboratoire de Psychologie, Université de Lomé, Lomé, Togo

    Kossi B. Kounou, Kolou S. Dassa & Gnansa Djassoa

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  1. Kossi B. Kounou
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Correspondence to Eric Bui.

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Kounou, K.B., Bui, E., Dassa, K.S. et al. Childhood trauma, personality disorders symptoms and current major depressive disorder in Togo. Soc Psychiatry Psychiatr Epidemiol 48, 1095–1103 (2013). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00127-012-0634-2

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00127-012-0634-2

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