Clinical Gerontologist · Feb 25, 2026

The Association of Childhood Adversity and Post-Traumatic Stress Symptoms with Cognition in Older Adults: A Cross-Sectional Study

By Ruisch JE, Quaedflieg CWEM, van Alphen SPJ et al.

OBJECTIVES: Adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) and post-traumatic stress symptoms can have long-term consequences, such as cognitive impairment. This study aimed to examine this association in older adults, ≥60 years. METHODS: This cross-sectional study included healthy controls (n = 63) and individuals with personality disorders (PD, n = 46) from the "PhArmacotherapy aND pOlypharmacy in oldeR Adults" study. ACEs were assessed using the childhood traumatic burden score (CTBS), post-traumatic stress symptoms using the Posttraumatic Symptom Scale Self-Report (PSS-SR), and cognition using a compact test battery, including memory and executive functioning. Multiple linear regression controlled for the confounding effects of age, gender, education, and PD. RESULTS: The results of this study indicate that ACEs do not influence memory or executive functioning in this population. On the contrary, higher PSS-SR scores are associated with lower scores of executive functioning. Factors such as older age, female gender, presence of personality disorder (PD), and lower level of education are associated with poorer test outcomes. CONCLUSIONS: ACEs are not associated with impairment in memory and executive functioning, but post-traumatic stress symptoms are negatively related to executive functioning. CLINICAL IMPLICATIONS: Clinicians working with older adults should consider routine assessment of trauma symptomatology, particularly in cases of unexplained executive functioning deficits.

doi.org/10.1080/07317115.2026.2631041Open accessPubMed 41741113Populations