Depression, PTSD, and comorbidity related to intimate partner violence in civilian and military women

The mental health consequences for women who have experienced intimate partner violence (IPV), such as major depressive disorder (MDD) and posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and especially their comorbidity, have received little attention in large-scale studies and treatment protocols for affected populations. We compared the association of PTSD, MDD, and PTSD/MDD comorbidity to IPV in two large cohorts, one of military and the other of civilian women. The adjusted prevalence of mental health symptoms, especially PTSD, was higher among abused than nonabused women in both samples. Mental health symptoms were also higher among the civilian sample compared to the military sample. Approximately one-third (34%) of the abused civilian women and one-fourth (25%) of the abused military women had symptoms that met criteria for at least one of the three diagnostic categories employed in this study, compared to 18% and 15% of nonabused women in the two groups. Comorbidity of PTSD and depression affected 19.7% of the civilian abused women versus 4.5% of nonabused civilian women, whereas for active duty military women, the prevalence was 4.6% and 4.2% for abused and nonabused, respectively. To better understand the mental health consequences of IPV and to design the most effective treatment and prevention programs, it is important to examine the presence of comorbidities between mental health disorders.