Physical and sexual abuse histories among children with borderline personality disorder.

Abstract

The purpose of the study was to determine whether a history of physical or sexual abuse is more common in children with borderline personality disorder than in other children evaluated in the same outpatient psychiatric clinic. The authors contrasted rates of abuse in 44 children diagnosed with borderline personality disorder and in 100 comparison children. The borderline personality disorder group had a significantly greater prevalence of physical and combined physical/sexual abuse. Sexual abuse rates alone did not differ significantly between groups. The finding of greater abuse in the group with borderline personality disorder supports the hypothesis that a history of trauma is associated with the disorder.