A Meta-Analysis of Amygdala and Hippocampus Volume in Trauma-Exposed and Non-Exposed Individuals
Poster No:
1870
Submission Type:
Abstract Submission
Authors:
Alice Mok1, Chrystal Douflias1, Julie Henry2, Fiona Maccallum2, Lena Oestreich3
Institutions:
1University of Queensland, Brisbane, QLD, 2The University of Queensland, Brisbane, QLD, 3The University of Queensland, Brisbane, Queensland
First Author:
Co-Author(s):
Introduction:
Childhood adversity is one of the most important risk factors for developing a wide range of mental health disorders, particularly post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), personality disorders, and mood and anxiety disorders (Copeland et al., 2018; Carr et al., 2013; Salokangas et al., 2020). Despite substantial research, the neurobiological mechanisms underlying these varied outcomes remain poorly understood. While some prior studies highlight the hippocampus and amygdala-brain regions integral to emotional processing, regulation, and memory-as particularly vulnerable to the effects of early trauma (Paquola et al., 2016; Milani et al., 2017; Ahmed-Leitao et al., 2016), findings across studies are inconsistent. This study used meta-analytic methodology to seek to address how childhood trauma impacts the structure of the hippocampus and amygdala and how these effects differ between trauma-exposed individuals with and without mental health diagnoses.
Methods:
We conducted a meta-analysis of neuroimaging studies to quantify the impact of childhood trauma on hippocampus and amygdala volumes in adults. A systematic search was performed in PubMed, SCOPUS, Web of Science, and PsycINFO databases abiding PRISMA guidelines. Inclusion criteria were: (1) history of childhood trauma or adversity, as indicated by self-reports, records of institutionalisation, or documentation by relevant organisations such as social work agencies, (2) MRI data, (3) over 18 years old, (4) reporting left and right hemisphere hippocampus or amygdala volume, and (5) inclusion of at least one comparison group. Studies were excluded if they included participants with neurodevelopmental disorders, neurological conditions, cognitive disorders, psychotic disorders, or bipolar disorders (see Figure 1). We calculated mean differences between groups for eligible studies, with Hedges' g used as the effect size measure to account for small sample sizes and ensure consistency across studies. The overall effects were weighted using a random-effects model that applied a weighting for sample size to control for sampling error. Heterogeneity was assessed using the I2 statistic.
Results:
Eleven studies that reported amygdala data, including 1077 subjects, contributed to the meta-analysis. Trauma-exposed individuals had significantly smaller amygdala volumes in both hemispheres compared to non-exposed individuals, with and without mental health disorders (right: g = -0.38, 95% CI = -0.69 to -0.07, I² = 80.39%; left: g = -0.34, 95% CI = -0.65 to -0.02, I² = 80.98%; see Figure 2A+B). In the comparison of trauma-exposed individuals without mental disorder diagnoses with non-exposed healthy individuals, left amygdala volume was significantly smaller (MD = -0.33, 95% CI = -0.63 to -0.03, I² = 63.87%), but the right amygdala showed only a trend towards significance (g = -0.29, 95% CI = -0.88 to 0.009, I² = 64.03%). For the hippocampus, 14 studies with 1219 subjects contributed to the meta-analysis. Trauma-exposed individuals, with and without mental health disorders, had significantly smaller hippocampal volumes in both hemispheres compared to non-exposed individuals (right: g = -0.65, 95% CI = -1.04 to -0.26, I² = 88.80%; left: g = -0.38, 95% CI = -0.71 to -0.041, I² = 85.16%; See Figure 2C+D). Trauma-exposed individuals without mental disorder diagnoses also had smaller hippocampal volumes compared to non-exposed individuals (right: g = -0.46, 95% CI = -0.83 to -0.08, I² = 77.92%; left: g = -0.50, 95% CI = -0.94 to -0.06, I² = 81.02%).
·Note. (A) Right Amygdala. (B) Left Amygdala. (C) Right Hippocampus. (D) Left Hippocampus.
Conclusions:
This meta-analysis identified small but robust associations between childhood trauma and reduced gray matter volume in the hippocampus and amygdala. These regions are crucial for emotion processing, emotion regulation, and memory. Our study sheds light on the neural mechanisms that may underlie the neurobiological pathology of childhood trauma-related disorders.
Disorders of the Nervous System:
Psychiatric (eg. Depression, Anxiety, Schizophrenia)
Lifespan Development:
Early life, Adolescence, Aging
Modeling and Analysis Methods:
Image Registration and Computational Anatomy
Neuroanatomy, Physiology, Metabolism and Neurotransmission:
Subcortical Structures 2
Novel Imaging Acquisition Methods:
Anatomical MRI 1
Keywords:
Meta- Analysis
MRI
Psychiatric Disorders
STRUCTURAL MRI
Sub-Cortical
Trauma
1|2Indicates the priority used for review
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2. Carr, C. P., Martins, C. M. S., Stingel, A. M., Lemgruber, V. B., & Juruena, M. F. (2013). The Role of Early Life Stress in Adult Psychiatric Disorders: A Systematic Review According to Childhood Trauma Subtypes. The Journal of Nervous and Mental Disease, 201(12), 1007–1020. https://doi.org/10.1097/NMD.0000000000000049
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