Table 4.
Executive functioning in adolescents with post-traumatic stress disorder
| Study nr | Paper | Status; Trauma expouse | Mean age (SD) | Sample size | Diagnostic criteria | Psychiatric co-occurrences | Psychotropic medication | EF domain | Task | Results | Statistic |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 29 | Barrera-Valencia (2017) | PTSD (current); Physical maltreatment, loss of one/both parents due to armed conflict, living in refugee conditions | PTSD: 12 (2) | 23 |
Interview MINI-Kid (DSM-IV-TR) |
No | NR | INH | SCWT | PSTD < HC | p = .015 |
| HC:12 (3) | 24 | SHIFT | WCST |
PTSD < HC (correct) PTSD < HC (categories) PTSD > HC (perseverative errors) |
p = .003 p = .003 p = .002 |
||||||
| 30 | Biedermann (2018) | PTSD (current and lifetime); Childhood sexual abuse (CSA) | PTSD + CSA: 15.95 (1.52) | 18 |
Interview K-SADS-PL (DSM-IV) |
PTSD + CSA: MDD (50%), AD (22.2%), ADHD (5.5%) PTSD: MDD (44%), AD (17.6%), ADHD (2.9%) CSA: ADHD (12,5%) HC: MDD (24%), AD (2.7%), ADHD (5.4%) |
NR (sedatives excluded) | SHIFT | TMT-B; WCST | NS | N/A |
| PTSD: 16.03 (1.94) | 34 | WM | Digit Span | NS | N/A | ||||||
| CSA: 15.29 (2.24) | 16 | ||||||||||
| HC*: 14.66 (1.89) | 37 | ||||||||||
| 31 | Park (2014) | PTSS; Witnessing a deadly accident | HR: 12.42 (0.30) | 26 |
Other UCLA-CPTSD-RI > 25 |
HR: Agoraphobia (7%), GAD (7%) LR: NR (but high scores on CDI) HC: None |
NR | INH | Flanker Task (CAT) | HR < LR < HC | η2 = .161; p < .001 |
| LR: 12.45 (0.44) | 25 | WM | Spatial Working Memory task (CAT) | HR < HC | η2 = .076; p = .036 | ||||||
| HC: 12.56 (0.28) | 30 | ||||||||||
| 32 | Yang (2014) | PTSD; Earthquake | PTSD: 9–17 | 34 |
Interview MINI-Kid; K-SADS-PL; DSM-IV |
No | NR | INH | SCWT | NS | p = .05 |
| HC: 9–17 | 66 | SHIFT | TMT-B | NS | p = .05 | ||||||
| WM | Digit Span | NS | p = .06 | ||||||||
|
INH SHIFT WM |
BRIEF-PR |
NS NS NS |
p = .07* p = .20 p = .10 |
Abbreviations: PTSS post-tramatic stress symptoms, HR high-risk group (trauma exposed, high PTSD symptoms (UCLA-PTSD >25)), LR low-risk group (trauma exposed, no marked PTSD (UCLA CPTSD-RI <25), depression (CDI <30), or anxiety (STAIC-S <40)), HC unexposed healthy controls, BRIEF-SR BRIEF self-report, BRIEF-PR BRIEF parent-report
*At the 12-month follow-up, PTSD score significantly higher on inhibition than HC (p =.03)