Background. Several prior studies have found reduced hippocampal
volume in victims of psychological trauma with post-traumatic stress disorder
(PTSD). We were interested to determine if this
finding was evident in women who were victimized by severe sexual
abuse in childhood.
Methods. In this study, hippocampal volume was measured using
quantitative magnetic resonance
imaging (MRI) in 21 women who reported being severely sexually abused
in childhood and 21 socio-demographically similar women without abuse histories.
Results. Women who reported sexual victimization in childhood
had
significantly reduced (5%
smaller) left-sided hippocampal volume compared to the non-victimized women.
Hippocampal volume was also smaller on the right side, but this failed
to reach
statistical significance. Left-sided hippocampal volume correlated highly
(rs=−0·73) with dissociative
symptom severity, but not with indices of explicit memory functioning.
Conclusions. These findings, which are generally consistent
with
prior reports of reduced hippocampal
volume in combat veterans with PTSD, suggest that diminished hippocampal
size may be either a
consequence of trauma exposure or a risk factor for the development of
psychiatric complications
following trauma exposure. The observed relationship between symptom
severity and hippocampal
volume suggests that mesial temporal lobe dysfunction may directly
mediate certain aspects of PTSD and dissociative disorder symptomatology.