Domestic violence can affect victims’ brain health for life, study suggests

The paper – Intimate partner violence, traumatic brain injury and long-term mental health outcomes in mid-life: The Drake IPV study – looked at data from 632 participants aged between 40 and 59.

Fourteen per cent reported having a history of domestic violence with physical abuse.

Compared with unexposed participants, those with a history of intimate partner violence-physical abuse (IPV-PA) were associated with a higher exposure of traumatic brain injuries (TBI) and a higher lifetime and ongoing diagnoses of depression, anxiety, sleep disorders andPTSD.

The analysis also found that even after an average of 27 years since exposure to IPV-PA, the risk of mental health disorders remained just as high.

The study concluded: “Among those reporting exposure to IPV-PA, the majority reported a history of repetitive blows to the head and mild TBI. A history of TBI, in turn, was associated with evidence of adverse mental health outcomes.

“These observations offer initial insights into the potential lifelong brain health consequences of intimate partner violence with physical abuse.

Link to full story here.