Biological psychiatry
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Biological psychiatry · May 1999
A.E. Bennett Research Award. Developmental traumatology. Part II: Brain development.
Previous investigations suggest that maltreated children with a diagnosis of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) evidence alterations of biological stress systems. Increased levels of catecholaminergic neurotransmitters and steroid hormones during traumatic experiences in childhood could conceivably adversely affect brain development. ⋯ These data suggest that the overwhelming stress of maltreatment experiences in childhood is associated with adverse brain development.