Subjects with borderline personality disorder (N = 21) or borderline
traits (N = 11) and nonborderline subjects with closely related diagnoses
(N = 23) were interviewed in depth regarding experiences of major childhood
trauma. Significantly more borderline subjects (81%) gave histories of such
trauma, including physical abuse (71%), sexual abuse (68%), and witnessing
serious domestic violence (62%); abuse histories were less common in those
with borderline traits and least common in the subjects with no borderline
diagnosis. These results demonstrate a strong association between a
diagnosis of borderline personality disorder and a history of abuse in
childhood.
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