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Traumatic life experiences and post‐traumatic stress symptoms in middle‐aged and older adults with and without autistic traits.

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Title: Traumatic life experiences and post‐traumatic stress symptoms in middle‐aged and older adults with and without autistic traits.
Authors: Stewart, Gavin R. (AUTHOR), Corbett, Anne (AUTHOR), Ballard, Clive (AUTHOR), Creese, Byron (AUTHOR), Aarsland, Dag (AUTHOR), Hampshire, Adam (AUTHOR), Charlton, Rebecca A. (AUTHOR), Happé, Francesca (AUTHOR)
Source: International Journal of Geriatric Psychiatry. Feb2022, Vol. 37 Issue 2, p1-10. 10p.
Subjects: Older people, Middle-aged persons, Post-traumatic stress, Adverse childhood experiences, Symptoms, Physical abuse
Abstract: Objectives: Research with younger adults has begun to explore associations between autism/autistic traits and vulnerability to Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD). Large scale studies and/or examination of age‐effects have not been conducted. Methods: Adults aged 50 years+ from the PROTECT study (n = 20,220) completed items about current and childhood socio‐communicative difficulties characteristic of autism. Approximately 1% (n = 251) endorsed high autistic traits, henceforth the Autism Spectrum Traits (AST) group. Differences between the AST and an age—and sex‐matched "Comparison Older Adults" (COA; n = 9179) group were explored for lifetime traumatic experiences and current symptoms of PTSD, depression, and anxiety. Results: Almost 30% of the AST group, compared to less than 8% of the COA, reported severe trauma in childhood/adulthood, including emotional, physical or sexual abuse. Elevated current PTSD symptoms were reported by AST compared to COA. An interaction was observed between autistic traits and trauma severity; the effect of level of trauma on PTSD symptoms was significantly greater for AST versus COA participants. This interaction remained significant when controlling for current depression and anxiety symptoms. Conclusions: The findings suggest that high autistic traits may increase the likelihood of experiencing trauma across the lifespan, and the impact of severe trauma on PTSD symptoms. Older adults with high (vs. low) autistic traits may be at greater risk of experiencing PTSD symptoms in latter life. Future research should test whether the pattern of results is similar for diagnosed autistic adults. Key points: Using data from PROTECT, a large healthy ageing cohort, approximately 30% of middle‐aged and older adults with high autistic traits reported severe trauma in childhood/adulthood compared to less than 8% of a low autistic trait comparison groupMiddle‐aged and older adults with high autistic traits also reported elevated current PTSD symptoms when compared to the low autistic trait comparison groupAn interaction was observed between autistic traits and trauma severity; the effect of level of trauma on PTSD symptoms was significantly greater for those with high autistic traits vs. low autistic traitsMiddle‐aged and older adults with high autistic traits—especially those who have experienced severe trauma ‐ may need additional support to mitigate this vulnerability to poor mental health later in life [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
Copyright of International Journal of Geriatric Psychiatry is the property of Wiley-Blackwell and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites without the copyright holder's express written permission. Additionally, content may not be used with any artificial intelligence tools or machine learning technologies. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)
Database: Psychology and Behavioral Sciences Collection
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  Data: Traumatic life experiences and post‐traumatic stress symptoms in middle‐aged and older adults with and without autistic traits.
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  Data: <searchLink fieldCode="AR" term="%22Stewart%2C+Gavin+R%2E%22">Stewart, Gavin R.</searchLink> (AUTHOR)<br /><searchLink fieldCode="AR" term="%22Corbett%2C+Anne%22">Corbett, Anne</searchLink> (AUTHOR)<br /><searchLink fieldCode="AR" term="%22Ballard%2C+Clive%22">Ballard, Clive</searchLink> (AUTHOR)<br /><searchLink fieldCode="AR" term="%22Creese%2C+Byron%22">Creese, Byron</searchLink> (AUTHOR)<br /><searchLink fieldCode="AR" term="%22Aarsland%2C+Dag%22">Aarsland, Dag</searchLink> (AUTHOR)<br /><searchLink fieldCode="AR" term="%22Hampshire%2C+Adam%22">Hampshire, Adam</searchLink> (AUTHOR)<br /><searchLink fieldCode="AR" term="%22Charlton%2C+Rebecca+A%2E%22">Charlton, Rebecca A.</searchLink> (AUTHOR)<br /><searchLink fieldCode="AR" term="%22Happé%2C+Francesca%22">Happé, Francesca</searchLink> (AUTHOR)
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  Data: <searchLink fieldCode="JN" term="%22International+Journal+of+Geriatric+Psychiatry%22">International Journal of Geriatric Psychiatry</searchLink>. Feb2022, Vol. 37 Issue 2, p1-10. 10p.
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  Data: <searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Older+people%22">Older people</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Middle-aged+persons%22">Middle-aged persons</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Post-traumatic+stress%22">Post-traumatic stress</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Adverse+childhood+experiences%22">Adverse childhood experiences</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Symptoms%22">Symptoms</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Physical+abuse%22">Physical abuse</searchLink>
– Name: Abstract
  Label: Abstract
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  Data: Objectives: Research with younger adults has begun to explore associations between autism/autistic traits and vulnerability to Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD). Large scale studies and/or examination of age‐effects have not been conducted. Methods: Adults aged 50 years+ from the PROTECT study (n = 20,220) completed items about current and childhood socio‐communicative difficulties characteristic of autism. Approximately 1% (n = 251) endorsed high autistic traits, henceforth the Autism Spectrum Traits (AST) group. Differences between the AST and an age—and sex‐matched "Comparison Older Adults" (COA; n = 9179) group were explored for lifetime traumatic experiences and current symptoms of PTSD, depression, and anxiety. Results: Almost 30% of the AST group, compared to less than 8% of the COA, reported severe trauma in childhood/adulthood, including emotional, physical or sexual abuse. Elevated current PTSD symptoms were reported by AST compared to COA. An interaction was observed between autistic traits and trauma severity; the effect of level of trauma on PTSD symptoms was significantly greater for AST versus COA participants. This interaction remained significant when controlling for current depression and anxiety symptoms. Conclusions: The findings suggest that high autistic traits may increase the likelihood of experiencing trauma across the lifespan, and the impact of severe trauma on PTSD symptoms. Older adults with high (vs. low) autistic traits may be at greater risk of experiencing PTSD symptoms in latter life. Future research should test whether the pattern of results is similar for diagnosed autistic adults. Key points: Using data from PROTECT, a large healthy ageing cohort, approximately 30% of middle‐aged and older adults with high autistic traits reported severe trauma in childhood/adulthood compared to less than 8% of a low autistic trait comparison groupMiddle‐aged and older adults with high autistic traits also reported elevated current PTSD symptoms when compared to the low autistic trait comparison groupAn interaction was observed between autistic traits and trauma severity; the effect of level of trauma on PTSD symptoms was significantly greater for those with high autistic traits vs. low autistic traitsMiddle‐aged and older adults with high autistic traits—especially those who have experienced severe trauma ‐ may need additional support to mitigate this vulnerability to poor mental health later in life [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
– Name: AbstractSuppliedCopyright
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  Group: Ab
  Data: <i>Copyright of International Journal of Geriatric Psychiatry is the property of Wiley-Blackwell and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites without the copyright holder's express written permission. Additionally, content may not be used with any artificial intelligence tools or machine learning technologies. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract.</i> (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)
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        Value: 10.1002/gps.5669
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        Text: English
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        PageCount: 10
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      – SubjectFull: Older people
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Middle-aged persons
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Post-traumatic stress
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      – SubjectFull: Adverse childhood experiences
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      – SubjectFull: Symptoms
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      – SubjectFull: Physical abuse
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              Text: Feb2022
              Type: published
              Y: 2022
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