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ORIGINAL RESEARCH article

Front. Psychiatry
Sec. Schizophrenia
Volume 15 - 2024 | doi: 10.3389/fpsyt.2024.1387833

Adverse Childhood Experiences among People with Schizophrenia at Comprehensive Specialized Hospitals in Bahir Dar, Ethiopia: A Comparative study

Provisionally accepted
Birhanu Assefa Birhanu Assefa 1*Tilahun Belete Tilahun Belete 2Rekik Damtew Rekik Damtew 2Tilahun Bete Tilahun Bete 1Solomon Moges Solomon Moges 3
  • 1 Department of Psychiatry, College of Health and Medical Sciences, Harar, Ethiopia
  • 2 Department of Psychiatry, School of Medicine, College of Medicine and Health Sciences, Bahir Dar University, Bahir Dar, Ethiopia
  • 3 College of Health Science, Woldia University, Woldia, Amhara, Ethiopia

The final, formatted version of the article will be published soon.

    BACKGROUND: People who have encountered adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) are predisposed to developing schizophrenia, experiencing exacerbated symptoms, and facing an elevated risk of disease relapse. It is imperative to evaluate the prevalence of ACEs to comprehend the specific attributes of this condition and enable the implementation of suitable interventions. The aim of this study was to assess the prevalence of ACEs and its determinants among people with schizophrenia and the patient attendants in Bahir Dar, Ethiopia. A comparative cross-sectional study was carried out at the Comprehensive Specialized Hospitals in Bahir Dar, Ethiopia, from April 26 to June 10, 2023. A total of 291 individuals with schizophrenia and 293 individuals from the patient attendants were selected using a systematic random sampling method. A proportional odds model ordinal logistic regression analysis was used to identify the factors associated with ACEs. The occurrence of at least one ACE among individuals diagnosed with schizophrenia was 69.4%, while patient attendants had a 46.8%, as indicated by the Chi-square test, which showed a significant difference at p <0.05. The study findings indicated that individuals with schizophrenia who have encountered four or more ACEs are more inclined to have lower educational attainment ), low resilient coping mechanisms (AOR: 2.07 [1.11 -3.90]), and poor social support ). Conversely, factors such as rural residency, illiteracy, and heightened attachment-related anxiety were found to be notably associated with the patient attendants. In this study, the substantial prevalence of ACEs emphasized the necessity for ACE screening and the implementation of evidence-based interventions to address and alleviate the overall burden of ACEs.

    Keywords: Schizophrenia, Adverse childhood experiences, Comparative study, Amhara, Ethiopia

    Received: 18 Feb 2024; Accepted: 29 Apr 2024.

    Copyright: © 2024 Assefa, Belete, Damtew, Bete and Moges. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.

    * Correspondence: Birhanu Assefa, Department of Psychiatry, College of Health and Medical Sciences, Harar, Ethiopia

    Disclaimer: All claims expressed in this article are solely those of the authors and do not necessarily represent those of their affiliated organizations, or those of the publisher, the editors and the reviewers. Any product that may be evaluated in this article or claim that may be made by its manufacturer is not guaranteed or endorsed by the publisher.