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Abusive experiences and psychiatric morbidity in women primary care attenders

  • Jeremy Coid (a1), Ann Petruckevitch (a1), Wai-Shan Chung (a1), Jo Richardson (a2), Stirling Moorey (a3) and Gene Feder (a4)...

Abstract

Background

Abusive experiences in childhood and adulthood increase risks of psychiatric morbidity in women and independently increase risks of further abuse over the lifetime. It is unclear which experiences are most damaging.

Aims

To measure lifetime prevalence of abusive experiences and psychiatric morbidity, and to analyse associations in women primary care attenders.

Method

A cross-sectional, self-report survey of 1207 women attending 13 surgeries in the London borough of Hackney, UK. Independent associations between demographic measures, abusive experiences and psychiatric outcome were established using logistic regression.

Results

Childhood sexual abuse had few associations with adult mental health measures, in contrast to physical abuse. Sexual assault in adulthood was associated with substance misuse; rape with anxiety, depression and post-traumatic stress disorder but not substance misuse. Domestic violence showed strongest associations with most mental health measures, increased for experiences in the past year.

Conclusions

Abuse in childhood and adulthood have differential effects on mental health; effects are increased by recency and severity. Women should be routinely questioned about ongoing and recent experiences as well as childhood.

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Copyright

COPYRIGHT: © 2003 The Royal College of Psychiatrists 

Corresponding author

Professor Jeremy Coid, Forensic Psychiatry Research Unit, St Bartholomew's Hospital, William Harvey House, 61 Bartholomew Close, London EC1A 7BE, UK. Tel: 020 7601 8138; fax: 020 7601 7969

Footnotes

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† See invited commentary, pp. 340–341, this issue.

Declaration of interest

None. Funding detailed in Acknowledgements.

Footnotes

References

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  • Cited by 84

  • Access

Abusive experiences and psychiatric morbidity in women primary care attenders

  • Jeremy Coid (a1), Ann Petruckevitch (a1), Wai-Shan Chung (a1), Jo Richardson (a2), Stirling Moorey (a3) and Gene Feder (a4)...
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