Frontiers in Neurology (Jun 2017)

Adverse Childhood Experiences Are Linked to Age of Onset and Reading Recognition in Multiple Sclerosis

  • Michael T. Shaw,
  • Natalie O. Pawlak,
  • Ariana Frontario,
  • Kathleen Sherman,
  • Lauren B. Krupp,
  • Leigh E. Charvet

DOI
https://doi.org/10.3389/fneur.2017.00242
Journal volume & issue
Vol. 8

Abstract

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BackgroundAdverse childhood experiences (ACEs) exert a psychological and physiological toll that increases risk of chronic conditions, poorer social functioning, and cognitive impairment in adulthood.ObjectiveTo investigate the relationship between childhood adversity and clinical disease features in multiple sclerosis (MS).MethodsSixty-seven participants with MS completed the ACE assessment and neuropsychological assessments as part of a larger clinical trial of cognitive remediation.ResultsAdverse childhood experience scores, a measure of exposure to adverse events in childhood, significantly predicted age of MS onset (r = –0.30, p = 0.04). ACEs were also linked to reading recognition (a proxy for premorbid IQ) (r = –0.25, p = 0.04). ACE scores were not related to age, current disability, or current level of cognitive impairment measured by the Symbol Digit Modalities Test (SDMT).ConclusionChildhood adversity may increase the likelihood of earlier age of onset and poorer estimated premorbid IQ in MS.

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