Childhood adversity and immune and inflammatory biomarkers associated with cardiovascular risk in youth: a systematic review

Abstract

Background: Research suggests that adverse experiences in childhood affect the development of cardiovascular disease (CVD), and immune and inflammation dysregulation has been postulated to play role. However, it is unclear whether the effects of social adversity on immune-related biomarkers are evident in early life, and if these biomarkers may provide an early risk marker for targeting prevention and intervention. The purpose of this review is to evaluate research on the relationship between adversity and CVD-relevant immune biomarkers in youth, assess the consistency of the findings, and consider what additional research is needed.

Methods: PubMed and PsycINFO searches were conducted through September 2011. Studies were selected using criteria related to the childhood exposure, biomarker outcome, age range, and sample selection. Twenty articles were identified, examining associations between childhood adversity and immune biomarkers (assessed during childhood) that are potential risk markers for CVD later in life.

Results: Although childhood adversity was not consistently related to youth levels of inflammatory and other immune markers relevant to CVD, a trend toward positive findings was observed. No detectable patterns were evident based on measure of adversity, biomarker, study design, or sample size.

Conclusions: Overall, our findings suggest this avenue of research is worth continued investigation. We offer recommendations for future research related to (1) study design and sample, (2) definition and measurement of adversity, (3) statistical analysis, and (4) outcomes that will help distinguish whether there are immunologic alterations related to adversity and subsequent CVD risk that can be reliably detected in childhood.