Interpersonal violence and violent re-injury in the Northern Territory

To analyse incidence of prior emergency department presentations for interpersonal violence and demographics for a series of hospital admissions for interpersonal violence injuries.

Retrospective analysis of trauma registry.

A tertiary hospital and primary referral centre for trauma in the Top End of the Northern Territory.

Patients hospitalised from 2010 to 2015 for injuries due to interpersonal violence with an injury severity score > 9.

Patient demographics, injury location, assault mechanism, alleged perpetrator, time/day of event, alcohol involvement, clinical outcome and prior emergency department presentations for interpersonal violence.

A total of 248 admissions for patients with Injury Severity Score > 9 due to interpersonal violence were identified. Indigenous females over-represented non-Indigenous females (35.4% vs 5.0%, P < .001). The majority of victims had evidence of alcohol intake at presentation. Victims of single-punch head injuries were mostly male and non-Indigenous, whilst Indigenous persons experienced significantly more blunt and penetrating weapon injuries (66.7% and 68.1%). Forty-three per cent of patients had a preceding emergency department presentation for interpersonal violence; female gender, Indigenous ethnicity, evidence of alcohol intake, and urban location of injury were independent risk factors for prior interpersonal violence presentation.

Interpersonal violence is a recurring disease for a just under half of those presenting to a Top End hospital with moderate to severe injuries. Indigenous ethnicity, female gender and evidence of alcohol intake are predictive of prior interpersonal violence presentations. Patient under-reporting and incomplete data may underestimate the true prevalence of interpersonal violence presentations in rural and remote locales.