ORIGINAL PAPER
Childhood illnesses as risk indicators of adult mental health symptomatology
1
University of North Dakota, Grand Forks, ND, United States
Submission date: 2024-02-12
Final revision date: 2024-08-14
Acceptance date: 2024-08-17
Online publication date: 2024-10-04
Corresponding author
KEYWORDS
TOPICS
ABSTRACT
Background:
Links between childhood illnesses such as acne and migraines and co-occurring or subsequent mental health symptomatol-ogy are not well understood. Early medical histories have seldom been examined as adversity risk indicators.
Participants and procedure:
This survey analysis of college students (N = 2,636) examined links between four forms of childhood illness (migraine head-aches, acne, asthma, and enuresis) and adult mental health symptomatology.
Results:
Four medical conditions often diagnosed in childhood or adolescence were prevalent enough in the college sample to test as risk indicators for lifetime mental health concerns. All four medical illnesses significantly raised the odds (ORM = 2.04) of lifetime depressive and anxiety disorder diagnoses. Current symptomatology was also raised for all but one (enuresis) medi-cal condition. These effects were found after controlling for respondent age and various forms of childhood maltreatment (sexual, physical, and/or emotional abuse).
Conclusions:
Heightened awareness of medical histories during clinical intake assessments seems warranted. Adversity researchers might also consider the inclusion of childhood medical conditions as future maladjustment risk indicators. Study limitations included the cross-sectional design and unclearly specified timing of the self-reported psychological and health recollections. The role of modulating variables such as gender, ethnicity, socioeconomic status, and family climate in physical-mental health relationships warrants continued focus.
Links between childhood illnesses such as acne and migraines and co-occurring or subsequent mental health symptomatol-ogy are not well understood. Early medical histories have seldom been examined as adversity risk indicators.
Participants and procedure:
This survey analysis of college students (N = 2,636) examined links between four forms of childhood illness (migraine head-aches, acne, asthma, and enuresis) and adult mental health symptomatology.
Results:
Four medical conditions often diagnosed in childhood or adolescence were prevalent enough in the college sample to test as risk indicators for lifetime mental health concerns. All four medical illnesses significantly raised the odds (ORM = 2.04) of lifetime depressive and anxiety disorder diagnoses. Current symptomatology was also raised for all but one (enuresis) medi-cal condition. These effects were found after controlling for respondent age and various forms of childhood maltreatment (sexual, physical, and/or emotional abuse).
Conclusions:
Heightened awareness of medical histories during clinical intake assessments seems warranted. Adversity researchers might also consider the inclusion of childhood medical conditions as future maladjustment risk indicators. Study limitations included the cross-sectional design and unclearly specified timing of the self-reported psychological and health recollections. The role of modulating variables such as gender, ethnicity, socioeconomic status, and family climate in physical-mental health relationships warrants continued focus.
REFERENCES (78)
1.
Aguinis, H., Gottfredson, R. K., & Joo, H. (2013). Best-practice recommendations for defining, identifying, and handling outliers. Organizational Research Methods, 16, 270–301. https://doi.org/10.1177/109442....
2.
American Psychiatric Association (2013). Diagnostic and statistical manual of mental disorders: DSM-5 (5th ed.). APA Publishing.
3.
Anxiety & Depression Association of America (2022). The relationship between migraines and depression. Re-trieved from https://adaa.org/webinar/consu... [accessed January 26, 2024].
4.
Archer, J., & Webb, I. A. (2006). The relation between scores on the Buss-Perry Aggression Questionnaire and aggressive acts, impulsiveness, competitiveness, dominance, and sexual jealousy. Aggressive Behavior, 32, 464–473. https://doi.org/10.1002/ab.201....
5.
Baek, M., Park, K., Lee, H. E., Kang, J. H., Suh, H. J., Kim, J. H., Lee, S. D., Pai, K. S., Han, S. W., Park, Y. H., Kim, K. D., & Korean Children’s Continence and Enuresis Society (2013). A nationwide epidemiological study of noc-turnal enuresis in Korean adolescents and adults: Population based cross sectional study. Journal of Korean Medical Science, 28, 1065–1070. https://doi.org/10.3346/jkms.2....
6.
Barnett, D., Manly, J., & Cicchetti, D. (1993). Defining child maltreatment: The interface between policy and re-search. In D. Cicchetti & S. L. Toth (Eds.), Advances in applied developmental psychology: Child abuse, child de-velopment and social policy (pp. 7–73). Ablex Publishing.
7.
Bickers, D. R., Lim, H. W., Margolis, D., Weinstock, M. A., Goodman, C., Faulkner, E., Gould, C., Gemmen, E., Dall, T., American Academy of Dermatology Association, & Society for Investigative Dermatology (2006). The burden of skin diseases: 2004 a joint project of the American Academy of Dermatology Association and the Society for Investigative Dermatology. Journal of the American Academy of Dermatology, 55, 490–500. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jaad....
8.
Bowe, W. P., Doyle, A. K., Crerand, C. E., Margolis, D. J., & Shalita, A. R. (2011). Body image disturbance in pa-tients with acne vulgaris. The Journal of Clinical and Aesthetic Dermatology, 4, 35–41.
9.
Bright, M. A., Knapp, C., Hinojosa, M. S., Alford, S., & Bonner, B. (2016). The comorbidity of physical, mental, and developmental conditions associated with childhood adversity: a population-based study. Maternal and Child Health Journal, 20, 843–853. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10995....
10.
Buss, A. H., & Perry, M. (1992). The Aggression Questionnaire. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 63, 452–459. https://doi.org/10.1037/0022-3....
11.
Buss, A. H., & Warren, W. L. (2000). Aggression Questionnaire: Manual. Western Psychological Services.
12.
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (2019). AsthmaStats: Uncontrolled asthma among children, 2012–2014. Retrieved from https://www.cdc.gov/asthma/ast....
13.
Clark, N. M., Feldman, C. H., Freudenberg, N., Millman, E. J., Wasilewski, Y., & Valle, I. (1980). Developing educa-tion for children with asthma through study of self-management behavior. Health Education Quarterly, 7, 278–297. https://doi.org/10.1177/109019....
14.
Cleveland Clinic (2023). Migraines in children. Retrieved from https://my.clevelandclinic.org... [accessed January 26, 2024].
15.
Correia de Sousa, J., Pina, A., Cruz, A. M., Quelhas, A., Almada-Lobo, F., Cabrita, J., Oliveira, P., & Yaphe, J. (2013). Asthma control, quality of life, and the role of patient enablement: a cross-sectional observational study. Primary Care Respiratory Journal, 22, 181–187. https://doi.org/10.4104/pcrj.2....
16.
Dalgard, F., Gieler, U., Holm, J. Ø., Bjertness, E., & Hauser, S. (2008). Self-esteem and body satisfaction among late adolescents with acne: Results from a population survey. Journal of the American Academy of Dermatology, 59, 746–751. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jaad....
17.
Dawson, A. L., & Dellavalle, R. P. (2013). Acne vulgaris. BMJ, 346, f2634. https://doi.org/10.1136/bmj.f2....
18.
Dong, M., Anda, R. F., Felitti, V. J., Dube, S. R., Williamson, D. F., Thompson, T. J., Loo, C. M., & Giles, W. H. (2004). The interrelatedness of multiple forms of childhood abuse, neglect, and household dysfunction. Child Abuse & Neglect, 28, 771–784. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chia....
19.
Dube, S. R., Anda, R. F., Felitti, V. J., Chapman, D. P., Williamson, D. F., & Giles, W. H. (2001). Childhood abuse, household dysfunction and the risk of attempted suicide throughout the life span: Findings from the Adverse Childhood Experiences Study. Journal of the American Medical Association, 286, 3089–3096. https://doi.org/10.1001/jama.2....
20.
Dunn, L. K., O’Neill, J. L., & Feldman, S. R. (2011). Acne in adolescents: Quality of life, self-esteem, mood and psy-chological disorders. Dermatology Online Journal, 17, 1.
21.
Fearon, P., & Hotopf, M. (2001). Relation between headache in childhood and physical and psychiatric symptoms in adulthood: National birth cohort study. BMJ, 322, 1145. https://doi.org/10.1136/bmj.32....
22.
Ferrante, G., & La Grutta, S. (2018). The burden of pediatric asthma. Frontiers in Pediatrics, 6, 186. https://doi.org/10.3389/fped.2....
23.
Fleiss, J. L., Levin, B., & Paik, M. C. (2003). Statistical methods for rates and proportions (3rd ed.). Wiley.
24.
Genizi, J., Bugdonskya, V., Aboud, A., Segal, I., Assaf, N., Srugo, I., & Keram, N. C. (2021). Migraine and tension-type headache among children and adolescents: Application of International Headache Society criteria in a clinical setting. Journal of Child Neurology, 36, 618–624. https://doi.org/10.1177/088307....
25.
Gerevich, J., Bacskai, E., & Czobor, P. (2007). The generalizability of the Buss-Perry Aggression Questionnaire. International Journal of Methods of Psychiatric Research, 16, 124–136. https://doi.org/10.1002/mpr.22....
26.
Greene, G., Gregory, A. M., Fone, D., & White, J. (2014). Childhood sleeping difficulties and depression in adult-hood: The 1970 British cohort study. Journal of Sleep Research, 24, 19–23. https://doi.org/10.1111/jsr.12....
27.
Hammill, C., & Vaillancourt, T. (2023). Acne and its association with internalizing problems. Dermatological Re-views, 4, 228–238. https://doi.org/10.1002/der2.1....
28.
Hassan, J., Grogan, S., Clark-Carter, D., Richards, H., & Yates, V. M. (2009). The individual health burden of acne: Appearance-related distress in male and female adolescents and adults with back, chest and facial acne. Jour-nal of Health Psychology, 14, 1105–1118. https://doi.org/10.1177/135910....
29.
Hillis, S. D., Anda, R. F., Felitti, V. J., Nordenberg, D., & Marchbanks, P. A. (2000). Adverse childhood experiences and sexually transmitted diseases in men and women: a retrospective study. Pediatrics, 106, e11. https://doi.org/10.1542/peds.1....
30.
Kidder, K., & King, A. R. (2022). Perception of parental love as a predictor of children’s life satisfaction. Jurnal Ilmu Perilaku, 6, 1–21. https://doi.org/10.25077/jip.6....
31.
King, A. R. (2020a). The ACE Questionnaire and lifetime physical aggression. Journal of Aggression, Maltreatment & Trauma, 30, 243–260. https://doi.org/10.1080/109267....
32.
King, A. R. (2020b). PID-5 trait indicators of emotional instability and childhood adversity antecedents. Psychologi-cal Reports, 125, 310–327. https://doi.org/10.1177/003329....
33.
King, A. R., Ballantyne, S., Ratzak, A., Knutson, S., Russell, T. D., Pogalz, C. R., & Breen, C. M. (2017a). Sibling ag-gression and externalized symptoms of psychological distress. Journal of Aggression, Maltreatment & Trauma, 27, 523–540. https://doi.org/10.1080/109267....
34.
King, A. R., Kuhn, S. K., Brezinski, S., Jowkar, M., & Smith, K. (2019a). Psychotropic medication use among trau-matized individuals with and without psychiatric histories. Current Psychopharmacology, 8, 1–13. https://doi.org/10.2174/221155....
35.
King, A. R., Kuhn, S. K., Strege, C., Russell, T. D., & Kolander, T. (2019b). Revisiting the link between childhood sexual abuse and adult sexual aggression. Child Abuse & Neglect, 94, 104022. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chia....
36.
King, A. R., Ratzak, A., Ballantyne, S., Knutson, S., Russell, T. D., Pogalz, C. R., & Breen, C. M. (2018). Differentiat-ing corporal punishment from physical abuse in the prediction of lifetime aggression. Aggressive Behavior, 44, 306–315. https://doi.org/10.1002/ab.217....
37.
King, A. R., & Russell, T. D. (2017). Psychometric properties of the Violent Experiences Questionnaire. Child Abuse & Neglect, 67, 64–75. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chia....
38.
King, A. R., & Russell, T. D. (2019). Lifetime acts of violence assessment (LAVA) predictors of laboratory aggres-sion. Aggressive Behavior, 45, 477–488. https://doi.org/10.1002/ab.218....
39.
King, A. R., Russell, T. D., & Bailly, M. D. (2017b). Psychometric properties of the lifetime assessment of violent acts. Violence and Victims, 32, 998–1013. https://doi.org/10.1891/0886-6....
40.
Krumm, A., Preszler, J., Cookman, M., & King, A. (2015). Sibling death and adult maladjustment indices: a brief report. Journal of Loss and Trauma, 21, 1–10. 10.1080/15325024.2015.1048152.
41.
Lim, K. S., Wong, C. H., McIntyre, R. S., Wang, J., Zhang, Z., Tran, B. X., Tan, W., Ho, C. S., & Ho, R. C. (2019). Global lifetime and 12-month prevalence of suicidal behavior, deliberate self-harm and non-suicidal self-injury in children and adolescents between 1989 and 2018: a meta-analysis. International Journal of Environmental Re-search and Public Health, 16, 4581. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph....
42.
Lu, Y., Mak, K. K., van Bever, H. P. S., Ng, T. P., Mak, A., & Ho, R. C. M. (2012). Prevalence of anxiety and depres-sive symptoms in adolescents with asthma: a meta-analysis and meta-regression. Pediatric Allergy and Immu-nology, 23, 707–715. https://doi.org/10.1111/pai.12....
43.
Luyster, F. S., Teodorescu, M., Bleecker, E., Busse, W., Calhoun, W., Castro, M., Chung, K. F., Erzurum, S., Israel, E., Strollo, P. J., & Wenzel, S. E. (2012). Sleep quality and asthma control and quality of life in non-severe and severe asthma. Sleep & Breathing, 16, 1129–1137. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11325....
44.
Mangold, A., & King, A. R. (2021). Relationships between experiences of sibling physical abuse and lifetime aggres-sion using statistical controls for poly-victimization. Journal of Family Violence, 36, 235–247. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10896....
45.
Mariotti, A. (2015). The effects of chronic stress on health: New insights into the molecular mechanisms of brain-body communication. Future Science OA, 1, fso21. https://doi.org/10.4155/fso.15....
46.
Megari, K. (2013). Quality of life in chronic disease patients. Health Psychology Research, 1, e27. https://doi.org/10.4081/hpr.20....
47.
Mersky, J. P., Topitzes, J., & Reynolds, A. J. (2013). Impacts of adverse childhood experiences on health, mental health, and substance use in early adulthood: a cohort study of an urban, minority sample in the US. Child Abuse & Neglect, 37, 917–925. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chia....
48.
Murray, C. B., Groenewald, C. B., de la Vega, R., & Palermo, T. M. (2020). Long-term impact of adolescent chron-ic pain on young adult educational, vocational, and social outcomes. Pain, 161, 439–445. https://doi.org/10.1097/j.pain....
49.
Negriff, S. (2020). ACEs are not equal: Examining the relative impact of household dysfunction versus childhood maltreatment on mental health in adolescence. Social Science & Medicine, 245, 112696. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.socs....
50.
National Center for Health Statistics (2023). 2022 NHIS child summary health statistics. Retrieved form https://data.cdc.gov/d/wxz7-ek....
51.
National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (2023). Headache. Retrieved from https://www.ninds.nih.gov/heal... [accessed January 26, 2024].
52.
National Institute of Mental Health (2024). Understanding the link between chronic disease and depression. Re-trieved from https://www.nimh.nih.gov/healt... [accessed August 13, 2024].
53.
Norton-Baker, M., Wolff, J. M., Kolander, T. W., Evans, M., & King, A. R. (2019). Childhood sexual abuse and life-time aggression. Journal of Child Sexual Abuse, 28, 690–707. https://doi.org/10.1080/105387....
54.
Orr, S. L., Potter, B. K., Ma, J., & Colman, I. (2017). Migraine and mental health in a population-based sample of adolescents. Canadian Journal of Neurological Sciences, 44, 44–50. https://doi.org/10.1017/cjn.20....
55.
Özge, A., Termine, C., Antonaci, F., Natriashvili, S., Guidetti, V., & Wöber-Bingöl, Ç. (2011). Overview of diagnosis and management of paediatric headache. Part I: Diagnosis. The Journal of Headache and Pain, 12, 13–23. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10194....
56.
Petrarca, K. (2022, September 8). Migraine and suicide – What’s the link? Retrieved from https://www.migrainedisorders.....
57.
Pocknell, V., & King, A. R. (2019). Asphyxiophilia: Sexual distress and maladjustment correlates. Psychiatric An-nals, 49, 224–229. https://doi.org/10.3928/004857....
58.
Pocknell, V., & King, A. R. (2020). Sadomasochistic sexual fantasies and psychological maladjustment in the gen-eral public. Psychiatric Annals, 50, 457–468. https://doi.org/10.3928/004857....
59.
Powers, S. W., Patton, S. R., Hommel, K. A., & Hershey, A. D. (2003). Quality of life in childhood migraines: Clini-cal impact and comparison to other chronic illnesses. Pediatrics, 112, e1. https://doi.org/10.1542/peds.1....
60.
Purvis, D., Robinson, E., Merry, S., & Watson, P. (2006). Acne, anxiety, depression and suicide in teenagers: a cross-sectional survey of New Zealand secondary school students. Journal of Paediatrics and Child Health, 42, 793–796. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1440....
61.
Petruccelli, K., Davis, J., & Berman, T. (2019). Adverse childhood experiences and associated health outcomes: a systematic review and meta-analysis. Child Abuse & Neglect, 97, 104127. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chia....
62.
Quek, Y. H., Tam, W. W. S., Zhang, M. W. B., & Ho, R. C. M. (2017). Exploring the association between childhood and adolescent obesity and depression: a meta-analysis. Obesity Reviews, 18, 742–754. https://doi.org/10.1111/obr.12....
63.
Richardson, L. P., Lozano, P., Russo, J., McCauley, E., Bush, T., & Katon, W. (2006). Asthma symptom burden: Relationship to asthma severity and anxiety and depression symptoms. Pediatrics, 118, 1042–1051. https://doi.org/10.1542/peds.2....
64.
Rowley, R. (2011). The 25 most common medical diagnoses. Retrieved from https://www.practicefusion.com....
65.
Samuels, D. V., Rosenthal, R., Lin, R., Chaudhari, S., & Natsuaki, M. N. (2020). Acne vulgaris and risk of depres-sion and anxiety: a meta-analytic review. Journal of the American Academy of Dermatology, 83, 532–541. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jaad.
67.
Scales, C. D., Smith, A. C., Hanley, J. M., Saigal, C. S., & Urologic Diseases in America Project (2012). Prevalence of kidney stones in the United States. European Urology, 62, 160–165. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.euru....
68.
Schachner, L. A., Alexis, A. F., Andriessen, A., Berson, D., Gold, M., Goldberg, D. J., Hu, S., Keri, J., Kircik, L., & Woolery‐Lloyd, H. (2023). Insights into acne and the skin barrier: Optimizing treatment regimens with ceramide‐containing skincare. Journal of Cosmetic Dermatology, 22, 2902–2909. https://doi.org/10.1111/jocd.1....
69.
Schwartz, C., Dugdale, D., & Conaway, B. (Eds.). (2023, April 25). Asthma in children. Retrieved from https://medlineplus.gov/ency/a....
70.
Shmagel, A., Foley, R., & Ibrahim, H. (2016). Epidemiology of chronic low back pain in US adults: Data from the 2009-2010 National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey. Arthritis Care & Research, 68, 1688–1694. https://doi.org/10.1002/acr.22....
71.
Siroux, V., Boudier, A., Anto, J. M., Cazzoletti, L., Accordini, S., Alonso, J., Cerveri, I., Corsico, A., Gulsvik, A., Jar-vis, D., de Marco, R., Marcon, A., Marques, E. A., Bugiani, M., Janson, C., Leynaert, B., & Pin, I. (2008). Quality-of-life and asthma-severity in general population asthmatics: Results of the ECRHS II study. Allergy, 63, 547–554. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1398....
72.
Sundbom, F., Malinovschi, A., Lindberg, E., Alving, K., & Janson, C. (2016). Effects of poor asthma control, insom-nia, anxiety and depression on quality of life in young asthmatics. The Journal of Asthma, 53, 398–403. https://doi.org/10.3109/027709....
73.
Tan, J., Beissert, S., Cook-Bolden, F., Chavda, R., Harper, J., Hebert, A., Lain, E., Layton, A., Rocha, M., Weiss, J., & Dréno, B. (2022). Evaluation of psychological wellbeing and social impact of combined facial and truncal ac-ne: a multi-national, mixed-methods study. Dermatology and Therapy, 12, 1847–1858. https://doi.org/10.1007/s13555....
74.
Üçer, O., & Gümüş, B. (2013). Quantifying subjective assessment of sleep quality, quality of life and depressed mood in children with enuresis. World Journal of Urology, 32, 239–243. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00345....
75.
Urrutia, I., Aguirre, U., Pascual, S., Esteban, C., Ballaz, A., Arrizubieta, I., & Larrea, I. (2012). Impact of anxiety and depression on disease control and quality of life in asthma patients. Journal of Asthma, 49, 201–208. https://doi.org/10.3109/027709....
76.
Valencia, L. S., & Cromer, B. A. (2000). Sexual activity and other high-risk behaviors in adolescents with chronic illness: a review. Journal of Pediatric and Adolescent Gynecology, 13, 53–64. https://doi.org/10.1016/s1083-....
77.
van der Feltz-Cornelis, C. M., Potters, E. C., van Dam, A., Koorndijk, R. P., & Elfeddali, I. (2019). Adverse child-hood experiences (ACE) in outpatients with anxiety and depressive disorders and their association with psy-chiatric and somatic comorbidity and revictimization. Cross-sectional observational study. Journal of Affective Disorders, 246, 458–464. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jad.....
78.
Veliz, P., McCabe, S. E., Eckner, J. T., & Schulenberg, J. E. (2017). Prevalence of concussion among US adolescents and correlated factors. JAMA, 318, 1180–1182. https://doi.org/10.1001/jama.2....
Copyright: © Institute of Psychology, University of Gdansk This is an Open Access journal, all articles are distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International (CC BY-NC-SA 4.0) License (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/4.0/), allowing third parties to copy and redistribute the material in any medium or format and to remix, transform, and build upon the material, provided the original work is properly cited and states its license.
| eISSN: | 2353-5571 |
| ISSN: | 2353-4184 |
We process personal data collected when visiting the website. The function of obtaining information about users and their behavior is carried out by voluntarily entered information in forms and saving cookies in end devices. Data, including cookies, are used to provide services, improve the user experience and to analyze the traffic in accordance with the Privacy policy. Data are also collected and processed by Google Analytics tool (more).
You can change cookies settings in your browser. Restricted use of cookies in the browser configuration may affect some functionalities of the website.
You can change cookies settings in your browser. Restricted use of cookies in the browser configuration may affect some functionalities of the website.
