Social, demographic and clinic factors and severity of posttraumatic stress disorder of intimate partner violence

Introduction: Intimate partner violence (IPV) has been recognized as a prevalent social problem and a source of mental health problems for women. The most common psychiatric difficulty in battered women is posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD). The aim of this study was to assess the prevalence and intensity of posttraumatic stress disorder among a group of victims of intimate partner violence, as well as the association between some sociodemographic factors and increased risk to develop posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Material and methods: 1. Diagnosis and a degree of intensification of PTSD were based on C.G. Watson's et al. PTSD-Interview. 2. Semi-structured interview was completed by 104 women to assess risk factors of PTSD (social, demographic and clinic). The examined group consisted of 104 women at the age between 18 and 68 years, the average age 40,8 years; dwelling in the shelters for single mothers and domestic violence victims and out-patients of psychiatric ambulatory. Results: 75.6% of women who are victims of interpersonal violence had significant, very significant or extreme increase of occurrence of PTSD symptoms. PTSD severity was associated with lower level of education and sexual violence. Conclusions: Victims of interpersonal violence are inherently at risk of PTSD. Lower level of education and sexual type of interpersonal violence are risk factors of severity PTSD.