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Published on: April 18, 2019
Characterizing Intimate Partner Violence-Related Head Trauma in Community-Recruited Women
Carrie Esopenko1, Divya Jain, Amelia J Hicks
1Author Affiliations: Department of Rehabilitation and Human Performance, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York City, New York (Dr Esopenko, Dr Jain, Dr Hicks, Ms Carlsson, and Ms Dorman); Department of Psychology, Pennsylvania State University, University Park, Pennsylvania (Ms Carter, Mr Cwiek, Ms Méndez-Fernández, Ms Rebuck, Dr Hillary, and Dr Marshall); Traumatic Brain Injury and Concussion Center, Department of Neurology, University of Utah School of Medicine, Salt Lake City, Utah (Ms Read, Ms Velez, Dr Tate, and Dr Wilde); George E. Wahlen Department of Veteran Affairs Salt Lake City Healthcare System, Salt Lake City, Utah (Ms Read, Dr Tate, and Dr Wilde); cBRAIN, Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Psychosomatics, and Psychotherapy, University Hospital, Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität, Munich, Bavaria, Germany (Drs Rojczyk and Koerte); Psychiatry Neuroimaging Laboratory, Department of Psychiatry, Mass General Brigham, Harvard Medical School, Somerville, Massachusetts (Drs Rojczyk, Koerte, and Lin); German Center for Child and Adolescent Health (DZKJ), partner site Munich, Munich, Germany (Dr Koerte); Department of Radiology, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts (Dr Lin); Center for Clinical Spectroscopy, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts (Dr Lin); Social Life and Engineering Sciences Imaging Center, Penn State University, University Park, Pennsylvania (Dr Hillary); and Department of Psychology, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, Blacksburg, Virginia (Dr Marshall).
Most cisgender women survivors of intimate partner violence (IPV) experience head trauma (HT). Blunt force trauma and strangulation were common IPV-HT mechanisms, but accurate frequency is challenging to determine.
Area of Science:
- Medical Research
- Public Health
- Trauma Studies
Background:
- Intimate partner violence (IPV) is a significant public health issue.
- Head trauma (HT) is a common injury in IPV, yet experiences are not well-characterized.
- Understanding IPV-related head trauma (IPV-HT) is crucial for improving care for survivors.
Purpose of the Study:
- To characterize the experiences of intimate partner violence (IPV)-related head trauma (HT) among cisgender women.
- To identify the mechanisms and frequency of IPV-HT injuries.
- To explore survivors' descriptions of IPV-HT episodes.
Main Methods:
- Conducted in-depth semi-structured interviews with 72 cisgender women (aged 18-60) across three US regions.
- Audio-recorded interviews to determine the number and mechanisms of lifetime IPV-HT injuries.
- Used interview quotes to illustrate participants' descriptions of IPV-HT episodes.
Main Results:
- 69 of 72 women reported at least one IPV-HT injury episode.
- Participants reported 1-9 lifetime IPV-HT episodes, totaling 240 injury episodes.
- Blunt force trauma (41.7%) and strangulation (22.1%) were the most frequent mechanisms; 22.5% involved multiple mechanisms.
- Recalled injury frequency may be underestimated due to recall challenges.
Conclusions:
- This study offers critical insights into head trauma experiences among women exposed to IPV.
- Findings can enhance the understanding and characterization of IPV-related injuries in women.
- Results may inform the development of better tools for identifying IPV-HT exposure and potential brain injury.
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