@article{ref1,
title="Relationship between early abuse, posttraumatic stress disorder, and activity levels in prepubertal children",
journal="Journal of the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry",
year="1996",
author="Glod, Carol A. and Teicher, Martin H.",
volume="35",
number="10",
pages="1384-1393",
abstract="OBJECTIVE: To examine the relationship between early physical and sexual abuse, posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), major depression, and activity levels in prepubertal children. METHOD: Nineteen unmedicated children with documented abuse (9.4 +/- 2.3 years; 6 girls, 13 boys) were compared with 15 healthy controls (8.3 +/- 1.9 years; 6 girls, 9 boys). Diagnoses were derived from structured interviews (Schedule for Affective Disorders and Schizophrenia for School-Age Children-Epidemiologic Version). Motionlogger actigraphs collected activity data for 72 continuous hours in 1-minute epochs. RESULTS: Overall, abused children were 10% more active than normal children (p < .05) and displayed a paucity of periods of low-level daytime activity (p < .01). Abused children with PTSD were largely responsible for the increase in activity. Abused children with PTSD had a robust and normal circadian activity rhythm. Abused children in whom PTSD failed to develop had an attenuated circadian amplitude compared with subjects with PTSD (101% versus 93%, p < .01) and were phase-delayed by 61 minutes versus controls (p = .01). Early onset of abuse was significantly associated with greater likelihood of the development of PTSD and hyperactivity. Later age of abuse was associated with circadian dysregulation. CONCLUSIONS: These preliminary observations indicate that abused children with PTSD have activity profiles similar to those of children with attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder, while abused children without PTSD have activity profiles more similar to those of depressed children.<p /><p>Language: en</p>",
language="en",
issn="0890-8567",
doi="10.1097/00004583-199610000-00026",
url="http://dx.doi.org/10.1097/00004583-199610000-00026"
}