Health consequences of intimate partner violence

Intimate partner violence, which describes physical or sexual assault, or both, of a spouse or sexual intimate, is a common health-care issue. In this article, I have reviewed research on the mental and physical health sequelae of such violence. Increased health problems such as injury, chronic pain, gastrointestinal, and gynaecological signs including sexually-transmitted diseases, depression, and post-traumatic stress disorder are well documented by controlled research in abused women in various settings. Intimate partner violence has been noted in 3-13% of pregnancies in many studies from around the world, and is associated with detrimental outcomes to mothers and infants. I recommend increased assessment and interventions for intimate partner violence in health-care settings.

[1]  M. Ellsberg,et al.  Ending Violence Against Women , 1999 .

[2]  Jacquelyn C. Campbell,et al.  Prevalence of intimate partner abuse in women treated at community hospital emergency departments. , 1998, JAMA.

[3]  D. Drossman,et al.  Sexual and Physical Abuse and Gastrointestinal Illness: Review and Recommendations , 1995, Annals of Internal Medicine.

[4]  Jesse W. Campbell,et al.  Domestic violence against patients with chronic neurologic disorders. , 1999, Archives of neurology.

[5]  J. Gazmararian,et al.  Violence and Reproductive Health: Current Knowledge and Future Research Directions , 2000, Maternal and Child Health Journal.

[6]  B. Brismar,et al.  Suicide attempts by battered wives , 1991, Acta psychiatrica Scandinavica.

[7]  A. Winkvist,et al.  Domestic violence and emotional distress among Nicaraguan women. Results from a population-based study. , 1999 .

[8]  J. Mcfarlane,et al.  Abuse during pregnancy: associations with maternal health and infant birth weight. , 1996, Nursing research.

[9]  M. Curry,et al.  Stress related to domestic violence during pregnancy and infant birth weight. , 1998 .

[10]  M. Moore,et al.  The Prevalence of Domestic Violence Among Women Seeking Abortion , 1998, Obstetrics and gynecology.

[11]  Jacquelyn C. Campbell,et al.  Annual and lifetime prevalence of partner abuse in a sample of female HMO enrollees , 1999 .

[12]  R. Acierno,et al.  A 2-year longitudinal analysis of the relationships between violent assault and substance use in women. , 1997, Journal of consulting and clinical psychology.

[13]  L. Kupper,et al.  Sexual behaviors and reproductive health outcomes: associations with wife abuse in India. , 1999, JAMA.

[14]  S. Plichta Violence and abuse: Implications for women's health. , 1996 .

[15]  J. Mcfarlane,et al.  Symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder in abused women in a primary care setting. , 1997, Journal of women's health.

[16]  B. Zuckerman,et al.  Violence during pregnancy and substance use. , 1990, American journal of public health.

[17]  F. Fikree,et al.  Domestic violence and health of Pakistani women , 1999, International journal of gynaecology and obstetrics: the official organ of the International Federation of Gynaecology and Obstetrics.

[18]  D. Stewart,et al.  Physical abuse in pregnancy. , 1993, CMAJ : Canadian Medical Association journal = journal de l'Association medicale canadienne.

[19]  J. Gazmararian,et al.  Prevalence of violence against pregnant women. , 1996, JAMA.

[20]  D. Counts Female suicide and wife abuse: a cross-cultural perspective. , 1987, Suicide & life-threatening behavior.

[21]  T. Gilmer,et al.  Intimate partner violence against women: do victims cost health plans more? , 1999, The Journal of family practice.

[22]  R. DiClemente,et al.  The effects of an abusive primary partner on the condom use and sexual negotiation practices of African-American women. , 1997, American journal of public health.

[23]  P. Janson,et al.  Prevalence of physical and sexual abuse before and during pregnancy among Swedish couples , 1999, Acta obstetricia et gynecologica Scandinavica.

[24]  J. Gazmararian,et al.  The Relationship Between Pregnancy Intendedness and Physical Violence in Mothers of Newborns , 1995, Obstetrics and gynecology.

[25]  C. Marmar,et al.  Sleep patterns of sheltered battered women. , 1999, Image--the journal of nursing scholarship.

[26]  E. Stark,et al.  Women at Risk: Domestic Violence and Women′s Health , 1996 .

[27]  J. Du Mont,et al.  Abuse: a risk factor for low birth weight? A systematic review and meta-analysis. , 2001, CMAJ : Canadian Medical Association journal = journal de l'Association medicale canadienne.

[28]  E. Letourneau,et al.  Gynecologic health consequences to victims of interpersonal violence. , 1999, Women's health issues : official publication of the Jacobs Institute of Women's Health.

[29]  E. Bass,et al.  The Battering Syndrome: Prevalence and Clinical Characteristics of Domestic Violence in Primary Care Internal Medicine Practices , 1995, Annals of Internal Medicine.

[30]  P. Ratner The incidence of wife abuse and mental health status in abused wives in Edmonton, Alberta. , 1993, Canadian journal of public health = Revue canadienne de sante publique.

[31]  R. Jewkes,et al.  Violence, rape, and sexual coercion: everyday love in a South African township. , 1997, Gender and development.

[32]  Cris M. Sullivan,et al.  The long-term effects of battering on women's health. , 1998, Women's health.

[33]  L. Ferris Women's Health: The Commonwealth Fund Survey , 1997 .

[34]  Jacquelyn C. Campbell,et al.  Women in a Prenatal Care/Substance Abuse Treatment Program: Links Between Domestic Violence and Mental Health , 2004, Maternal and Child Health Journal.

[35]  Jacquelyn C. Campbell,et al.  Voices of Strength and Resistance , 1998 .

[36]  R. Mckeown,et al.  Physical health consequences of physical and psychological intimate partner violence. , 2000, Archives of family medicine.

[37]  J. Mcfarlane,et al.  The birth-weight/battering connection. , 1989, The American journal of nursing.

[38]  Jacquelyn C. Campbell,et al.  Forced Sex and Intimate Partner Violence , 1999 .

[39]  M. Cascardi,et al.  Co-occurrence and Correlates of Posttraumatic Stress Disorder and Major Depression in Physically Abused Women , 1999, Journal of Family Violence.

[40]  L. Olson,et al.  Health indicators and intimate partner violence among women who are members of a managed care organization. , 1999, Preventive medicine.

[41]  Cris M. Sullivan,et al.  Women Who Use Domestic Violence Shelters: Changes in Depression Over Time , 1995 .

[42]  Jacquelyn C. Campbell,et al.  Mental and physical health effects of intimate partner violence on women and children. , 1997, The Psychiatric clinics of North America.

[43]  Jacquelyn C. Campbell,et al.  Empowering survivors of abuse : health care for battered women and their children , 1998 .

[44]  Sally C. Morton,et al.  Violence victimization after HIV infection in a US probability sample of adult patients in primary care. , 2000, American journal of public health.

[45]  M. Koss,et al.  Deleterious effects of criminal victimization on women's health and medical utilization. , 1991, Archives of internal medicine.

[46]  Jacquelyn C. Campbell,et al.  The role of alcohol use in intimate partner femicide. , 2001, The American journal on addictions.

[47]  R. Lorenz,et al.  Blunt trauma during pregnancy , 1990 .

[48]  C. S. Cook,et al.  Characteristics of participants in domestic violence : Assessment at the scene of domestic assault. , 1997 .

[49]  L. Bakketeig,et al.  Gynaecological impact of sexual and physical abuse by spouse. A study of a random sample of Norwegian women , 1989, British journal of obstetrics and gynaecology.

[50]  J. Golding Intimate Partner Violence as a Risk Factor for Mental Disorders: A Meta-Analysis , 1999, Journal of Family Violence.

[51]  S. Fuchs,et al.  Physical and nonphysical partner abuse and other risk factors for low birth weight among full term and preterm babies: a multiethnic case-control study. , 1999, American journal of epidemiology.

[52]  J. Mcfarlane,et al.  The effectiveness of an abuse assessment protocol in public health prenatal clinics. , 1999, American journal of public health.

[53]  R. Gartner The Victims of Homicide: A Temporal and Cross-National Comparison , 1990 .

[54]  K. Kolodner,et al.  Erratum: The 'battering syndrome': Prevalence and clinical characteristics of domestic violence in primary care internal medicine practices (Annals of Internal Medicine (1995) 123 (737-746)) , 1996 .

[55]  D. Campbell,et al.  Physical and Emotional Abuse In Pregnancy: A Comparison of Adult and Teenage Women , 1993, Nursing research.

[56]  D. Drossman,et al.  Selected symptoms associated with sexual and physical abuse history among female patients with gastrointestinal disorders: the impact on subsequent health care visits , 1998, Psychological Medicine.

[57]  N. Muhajarine,et al.  Physical abuse during pregnancy: prevalence and risk factors. , 1999, CMAJ : Canadian Medical Association journal = journal de l'Association medicale canadienne.

[58]  S. Jejeebhoy Associations between wife-beating and fetal and infant death: impressions from a survey in rural India. , 1998, Studies in family planning.

[59]  M. Harper,et al.  Violent maternal deaths in North Carolina. , 1999, Obstetrics and gynecology.

[60]  J. Mcfarlane,et al.  Testing an intervention to prevent further abuse to pregnant women. , 1999, Research in nursing & health.

[61]  C. Watts,et al.  Women, violence and HIV / AIDS in Zimbabwe. , 1997, SAfAIDS news : Southern Africa AIDS Information Dissemination Service bulletin.

[62]  Charles R. Marmar,et al.  Trauma and the Vietnam War generation: Report of findings from the National Vietnam Veterans Readjus , 1990 .

[63]  J. Mcfarlane,et al.  The Abuse Assessment Screen: A clinical instrument to measure frequency, severity, and perpetrator of abuse against women. , 1998 .

[64]  J. Champion,et al.  The context of sexually transmitted disease: life histories of woman abuse. , 1998, Issues in mental health nursing.

[65]  Jacquelyn C. Campbell,et al.  Predictors of Depression in Battered Women , 1997 .

[66]  D. Richter,et al.  Violence against women in Sierra Leone: frequency and correlates of intimate partner violence and forced sexual intercourse. , 1998, African journal of reproductive health.

[67]  R. Muelleman,et al.  Risk factors for injury to women from domestic violence. , 1999, The New England journal of medicine.

[68]  A. Gielen,et al.  Women's Lives After an HIV-Positive Diagnosis: Disclosure and Violence , 2000, Maternal and Child Health Journal.

[69]  C. Jagger,et al.  A comparative study of women with chronic pelvic pain, chronic nonpelvic pain and those with no history of pain attending general practitioners , 1998, British journal of obstetrics and gynaecology.

[70]  Jacquelyn C. Campbell,et al.  Women's Responses to Battering Over Time , 1999 .

[71]  J. Liljestrand,et al.  Candies in hell: women's experiences of violence in Nicaragua. , 2000, Social science & medicine.

[72]  J. Campbell,et al.  Why battering during pregnancy? , 1993, AWHONN's clinical issues in perinatal and women's health nursing.

[73]  J. Grisso,et al.  Violent injuries among women in an urban area. , 1999, The New England journal of medicine.

[74]  A C Gielen,et al.  The intersections of HIV and violence: directions for future research and interventions. , 2000, Social science & medicine.