Radhika Malhotra, Yash S Shah, Paul D Langer and Neelakshi Bhagat*

Department of Ophthalmology. Rutgers New Jersey Medical School, Newark, NJ, USA

*Corresponding Author: Neelakshi Bhagat, Department of Ophthalmology. Rutgers New Jersey Medical School, Newark, NJ, USA.

Received: February 08, 2022; Published: February 18, 2022

Abstract

Objective: Intimate partner violence (IPV) has increased since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic. Ophthalmologists and emergency department (ED) physicians should be vigilant in assessing patients with ocular injuries for a history of IPV. Our study is aimed to describe the epidemiology of patients presenting to the emergency department with ocular injuries secondary to IPV.

Methods: We conducted a retrospective study using the National Electronic Injury Surveillance System-All Injury Program (NEISS-AIP) from 2006 to 2016 in 60 emergency departments across the United States. 25,541 ED patients with an ocular injury due to IPV were analyzed. Main outcomes included race, hospital size, incident location, reason for assault, precipitating cause of injury, and medical diagnosis.

Results: IPV-related ocular injuries were more commonly noted in women compared to men (73.8% vs 26.2%). Most patients were in the young adult group (21-30 years old). Men and women were primarily Black in majority. In males, the precipitating cause of injury was either being struck by an object or injury by fire (struck 66.1%, fire 30.6%), whereas females were overwhelming injured by a striking injury (90.4%). The most common diagnosis was an ocular contusion or abrasion (males 43.4% vs females 53.4%).

Conclusion and Relevance: IPV results in significant ocular trauma that presents to the ED, and is more commonly see in women, black race, and young adults. However, men can also be victims of IPV and should be equally evaluated. Assessment of IPV is important in ocular injury seen in the ED.

Keywords: Intimate Partner Violence; IPV; Ocular Injuries; Eye Trauma

References

1. National Center for Injury Prevention and Control of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The National Intimate Partner and Sexual Violence Survey (NISVS).
2. National Center for Injury Prevention and Control of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The National Intimate Partner and Sexual Violence Survey (NISVS). 2010 Summary Report.
3. Dearwater SR., et al. “Prevalence of intimate partner abuse in women treated at community hospital emergency departments”. JAMA5 (1998): 433-438.
4. Telfer MR., et al. “Trends in the aetiology of maxillofacial fractures in the United Kingdom (1977-1987)”. British Association of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgeons 4 (1991): 250-255.
5. Clark TJ., et al. “Intimate partner violence: an underappreciated etiology of orbital floor fractures”. Ophthalmic Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery 6 (2014): 508-11.
6. Loder RT and L Momper. “Demographics and fracture patterns of patients presenting to US emergency departments for intimate partner violence”. JAAOS Global Research and Reviews2 (2020).
7. Cohen AR., et al. “Intimate partner violence as a mechanism of traumatic ocular injury in women”. Canadian Journal of Ophthalmology 3 (2019): 355-358.
8. Sheridan DJ and KR Nash. “Acute injury patterns of intimate partner violence victims”. Trauma, Violence, and Abuse 3 (2007): 281-289.
9. Wu V., et al. “Pattern of physical injury associated with intimate partner violence in women presenting to the emergency department: a systematic review and meta-analysis”. Trauma, Violence, and Abuse 2 (2010): 71-82.
10. Scribano PV., et al. “The effects of intimate partner violence before, during, and after pregnancy in nurse visited first time mothers”. Maternal and Child Health Journal2 (2013): 307-318.
11. Dickerson-Amaya N and BM Coston. “Invisibility Is Not Invincibility: The Impact of Intimate Partner Violence on Gay, Bisexual, and Straight Men's Mental Health”. American Journal of Men's Health 3 (2019): 1557988319849734.
12. Lutgendorf MA. “Intimate Partner Violence and Women's Health”. Obstetrics and Gynecology3 (2019): 470-480.
13. Clark TJ SE. “Intimate Partner Violence (IPV) Awareness: ASK, ASSESS, REFER”. April 3, (2015).
14. Crandall ML., et al. “Injury patterns among female trauma patients: recognizing intentional injury”. Journal of Trauma1 (2001): 42-45.
15. Dawoud SA., et al. “Detection and Referral of Orbital and Ocular Injuries Associated With Intimate Partner Violence Following an Educational and Screening Initiative in an Emergency Department”. JAMA Ophthalmology (2021).

Citation

Citation: Neelakshi Bhagat., et al. “Ocular Injuries Caused by Intimate Partner Violence Using an Emergency Room Database - A Gender - Based Analysis".Acta Scientific Ophthalmology 5.3 (2022): 38-42.

Copyright

Copyright: © 2022 Neelakshi Bhagat., et al. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.