A study complied by a UNM professor says women who are physically abused are in poorer health than women who are not involved in intimate partner violence.
Dr. David Sklar, professor and chairman of emergency services at UNM's Health Sciences Center, said his research concludes that women who are abused by their intimate partner are more likely to suffer from drug abuse, alcohol abuse, nightmares and post-tramatic stress.
"We wanted to know if there were any differences between women who came into our emergency for physical abuse compared to that of women who were being treated for other reasons," he said. "We saw major differences."
Sklar interviewed 427 women between the ages of 18 and 50. They were interviewed outside of the emergency room and given a physical exam and blood test.
During the interviews, the women were asked a series of questions regarding past physical abuse, drug usage, past medical history, and if they had medical insurance.
"We wanted to make sure that the women we interviewed were comparable as far as ages and insurance," he said. "Knowing the differences would pinpoint why women are being abused."
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According to the study, 47.3 percent of the women interviewed reported that they had been physically abused by their partners. Of those, 25 percent reported the most recent assault occurred in the last 12 months, while 73 percent said the most recent assault occurred more than a year ago.
Sklar said these figures show that one out of two women coming into the emergency room are being treated for intimate partner violence.
"We also found that women who are being abused are more likely to suffer from nightmares, alcohol abuse, hepatitis and have a higher rate of a genital infection," he said. "They also seem to have a lower blood count than the other women."
Sklar said one similarity between the two groups was the amount of illegal drugs found in the women's urine samples. In both of the groups, illicit drugs could be traced.
"The study is the first to identify a cluster of symptoms physicians can screen for in abused women and it points to the importance of screening for physical abuse within the E.R.," he said.
He warned that although his research pinpoints specific differences in the groups, abuse occurs in all levels of society - not just among women with a low economic status.
"Physical abuse doesn't discriminate and can happen to anyone," Sklar said.
He said more research needs to be conducted with a larger group of women. Not all of the women who were initially asked to participate showed up for the tests and questionnaire, Sklar said.
"We have always known that the percentage of women with a history of abuse is high," he said. "But this study shows us that it is warranted that all women who seek emergency care should be screened for this type of abuse."
Sklar's study has been published in the January issue of Annals of Emergency Medicine.
