Characterizing symptoms of traumatic brain injury in survivors of intimate partner violence

ABSTRACT

Objective: This study examined the extent symptoms associated with potential traumatic brain injury (TBI) in intimate partner violence (IPV) survivors overlap with sport-related concussions (SRC). IPV survivor responses on the Brain Injury Severity Assessment (BISA) tool, an IPV-specific questionnaire developed to assess TBI symptoms; and the widely-used Sport Concussion Assessment Tool (SCAT5), were compared. Additionally, psychopathological assessments of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), depression, and anxiety were completed to account for confounding influences.

Design: Eighteen women who had experienced IPV were recruited from high-barrier community-based women’s shelters.

Results: The total number of reported TBI were higher when employing the BISA compared to SCAT5, the strongest symptom-based correlations associated TBI severity was associated with arousal states (“Fatigue”, “Anxious”, “Drowsiness”, “Just Don’t Feel Right”) or aspects of memory/cognition (“Difficulty Concentrating”, “Difficulty Remembering”). Furthermore, TBI severity was also related to the degree of depression and anxiety, but unrelated to PTSD.

Conclusions: Taken together, these findings can contribute to the development of enhanced screening tools and supports to help front-line staff identify TBI as a possible contributor to challenges faced by IPV survivors. By this means, women who have experienced IPV will be more likely to break the cycle of abuse and have more positive long-term health outcomes

KEYWORDS:

• Intimate partner violence
• domestic violence
• IPV screening tools
• mild traumatic brain injury
• concussion
• brain injury severity assessment
• BISA
• sport concussion assessment tool
• SCAT5

Acknowledgments

The authors would like to thank the staff at our community partner sites (Kelowna Women’s Shelter, Ki-Low-NA Friendship Society and the Elizabeth Fry Society) for their help in the recruitment process and also the participants for sharing their experiences with us and enabling this research investigation to occur. The authors would also like to acknowledge the Canadian Traumatic brain injury Research Consortium (CTRC) for their support of this project.

Declaration of Interest

PvD and the work conducted in this project were supported by funding from the Canadian Foundation for Innovation, the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council and an anonymous donor. The authors have nothing to declare.

Correction Statement

This article has been republished with minor changes. These changes do not impact the academic content of the article.

Additional information

Funding

This work was supported by the Anonymous Donor; Canadian Foundation for Innovation; Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada.