Survivor profile, abuse patterns, and health consequences in a hospital-based crisis center in South India: A...

This study analyzes survivor and perpetrator profiles, patterns of domestic violence and abuse, and associated health consequences among women presenting to a hospital-integrated crisis center in India. It also examines associations between demographic characteristics and abuse types.

This retrospective study included all consecutive survivors registered at a tertiary-care hospital-based crisis center in South India from August 2024 to August 2025. Structured documentation captured survivor demographics, perpetrator characteristics, abuse types, health outcomes, and help-seeking behavior. Categorical variables were expressed as frequency and percentage and continuous variables as mean ± standard deviation. Associations were assessed using χ² or Fisher's exact tests; P < 0.05 was considered statistically significant.

Among 299 survivors, the mean age was 33.6 ± 8.1 years, 72.6% were married and 76.9% identified husbands as perpetrators. Emotional (86.0%), verbal (81.9%), and economic (69.9%) abuse predominated, while 57.9% reported physical violence and 29.1% sexual violence. Alcohol use among perpetrators was reported in 45.8%. Among survivors, 95.7% reported emotional distress, 50.5% sustained physical injuries, and 11.7% experienced reproductive health consequences. Married and divorced/separated survivors reported higher rates of economic, verbal, physical, and sexual abuse compared with single survivors. Profession was significantly associated with sexual violence, which was reported more frequently among women engaged in professional services (P < 0.001). Despite high severity, only 34.8% reported abuse to police and 10.0% initiated legal proceedings.

Domestic violence among our cohort was predominantly characterized by emotional and economic abuse with substantial mental and reproductive health impacts. Despite help-seeking, legal engagement remains limited. Hospital-based crisis centers within obstetric services play an important role in identifying survivors, documenting cases and providing multidisciplinary support.