This volume presents a comprehensive overview of childhood trauma, considering the psychopathological definition and its neurobiological implications as well as its impact on different psychiatric disorders. The focus on childhood trauma rather than that occurring in adulthood is important due to its general ¿neuro-psyco-sociö and its specific biological implications, since trauma during childhood impacts directly on neurodevelopment. It has been suggested that early life stress increases vulnerability to psychiatric disorders; however, the exact mechanisms of this association are not yet completely understood. Although childhood trauma could be considered too unspecific to be an important risk factor for individual psychiatric disorders since it seems to occur across