Childhood Trauma and Psychogenic Nonepileptic Seizures: a Review of Findings with Speculations on the Underlying Mechanisms

Abstract Objective The objective of this review was to examine the possible link between psychological trauma in a patient's medical history and the onset of psychogenic nonepileptic seizures (PNES). Methodology An electronic search of published reports was made using the search engines PubMed-MedLine, EBSCO, PsycINFO, SFX, and Embase and the keywords “PNES”, “psychogenic seizures”, “sexual abuse”, and “trauma”. Results A correlation emerged between history of childhood trauma and the presence of PNES. Antecedent trauma was more frequent in females than in males and in patients exhibiting psychiatric disorders but was inversely correlated with cognitive impairment. Conclusions In the presence of PNES, it is important to accurately investigate the patient's medical history in search of psychological trauma, particularly in women and in patients with psychiatric disorders.