HIV Insight: Sexual Intimate Partner Violence

Saturday, November 7, 2015

Intimate Partner Violence & Termination of Pregnancy: A Cross-Sectional Study of Married Bangladeshi Women

The prevalence of intimate partner violence (IPV) and its consequences on women’s reproductive health and pregnancy outcomes have been well documented. Bangladesh is burdened with the high prevalence of IPV and induced abortion/menstrual regulation. Understanding their association may benefit strategies to reduce termination of pregnancy (TOP). Therefore, this study assesses the association between experience of IPV and TOP among married Bangladeshi women age 15–49 years.

This cross-sectional study is based on data from 10,146 married women of reproductive age from the Bangladesh Demographic Health Survey, 2007 (BDHS). A subset of interviews from currently married women, living with a husband and who had at least one pregnancy in the last 5 years (n = 1875) were extracted.

Results of this study showed that among the respondents, 31.4 % experienced physical and/or sexual IPV: 13.4 % experienced only sexual violence and 25.8 % experienced only physical violence. 21.0 % respondents ever had a TOP and 5.8 % had a TOP in last 5 years. Physical IPV was significantly associated with both TOP ever (OR = 1.36; 95 % CI: 1.05–1.77) and TOP in last 5 years (OR = 1.72; 95 % CI: 1.11–2.06).

Prevention of intimate partner violence which was associated with pregnancy termination may reduce the high incidence of termination of pregnancies in Bangladesh.

Full article at: http://goo.gl/TY7gl3

By: Mosfequr Rahman

Department of Population Science and Human Resource Development, University of Rajshahi, Rajshahi 6205, Bangladesh

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Friday, November 6, 2015

Sexual Intimate Partner Violence as a Form of Military Sexual Trauma

Military sexual trauma (MST) is known to impact women's health, but little is known about the occurrence of MST perpetrated by a past or current intimate partner. This study identified the occurrence of intimate partner violence (IPV)-related MST in a sample of female veterans. We also examined the associations between MST history (no MST history, IPV-related MST, and MST by a nonintimate partner) and mental and physical health symptoms.

Participants were 369 female veteran patients of Department of Veteran Affairs (VA) facilities in the New England region of the United States who completed a larger 2012 mail survey that included validated assessments of MST, posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD Checklist) and depressive symptoms (CES-D), and general physical and mental health functioning (Short Form-36).

Approximately half (49%) of the women in this sample reported a history of MST, of which 27 (15%) were categorized as IPV-related MST. Few differences in health measures were observed among women with IPV-related MST compared with women who experienced MST by a nonintimate partner or women with no MST history. However, women who experienced IPV-related MST had similarly severe health symptoms as women who reported MST by a nonintimate partner and more severe PTSD symptoms than women without a history of MST.

Some women veterans have experienced MST at the hands of an intimate partner and face health impacts. This topic warrants additional attention in clinical and research efforts.

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By: Mercado R1, Ming Foynes M2, Carpenter SL2, Iverson KM2.

1Harvard South Shore Psychiatry Residency Program.
2Women's Health Sciences Division.