Intimate partner violence and childhood illnesses in Cambodia: a cross-sectional study

Abstract

BackgroundAround a quarter of Cambodian women reported being victim to intimate partner violence (IPV) from their current partner. Children’s exposure to familial IPV impacts psychosocial well-being and emerging research indicates associations with physical health.ObjectiveInvestigate associations between maternal experience of IPV and common childhood illnesses in Cambodia.Design, setting, participantsAnalysis of the Cambodia Demographic and Health Survey (2000, 2005, 2014) using logistic regression, including 5025 children under 5 years of age whose mothers responded to questions about experience of emotional, physical and sexual violence by current partner.Main outcome measuresReport of diarrhoea, acute respiratory infection (ARI) or fever, respectively, in children in the two weeks preceding the survey.ResultsChildren of mothers with experience of any type of IPV had estimated elevated odds of diarrhoea (adjusted OR (aOR)=1.65, 95% CI 1.39 to 1.97), estimated odds of ARI (aOR=1.78, 95% CI 1.47 to 2.16) and estimated odds of fever (aOR=1.51, 95% CI 1.31 to 1.76) compared with children of mothers without reported IPV experience. Exposure to any form of IPV corresponded to an estimated 2.65 times higher odds (95% CI 2.01 to 3.51) for reporting having both diarrhoea and ARI.ConclusionsOur findings support the notion that children’s susceptibility to diarrhoea, ARI and fever may be affected by mothers’ experience of IPV, including emotional violence. Maternal and child health programmes should train healthcare professionals to identify domestic violence and children at risk, and link victims to appropriate health and legal services.

Could children exposed to intimate partner violence against their mother have more functional gastrointestinal disorders?

“…The results of this cohort show the distribution of FGIDs in a sample of children from a low-income community, exposed or not to IPV committed against their mother. The occurrence of CEIPV increased the chance of FGIDs, as identified in other international studies, 17 , 18 , 19 even after controlling for confounding variables.…”

“…The greater chance of FGIDs when CEIPV started in the first two years of life, identified in the present study, corroborates the international literature that also shows harmful effects on the physical health of children exposed to violence early in life, despite verifying different ages from the one the authors analyzed. 17 , 18 , 19 This occurrence can be explained due to the brain structures responsible for managing the stress response and emotional control are slow to develop early in life; therefore, the earlier the exposure, the more susceptible the child becomes to the damage caused by ACEs. 23 Exposure to adversities in childhood increases the risk of health problems throughout life, 17 , 18 due to the greater plasticity and vulnerability of the child's brain to environmental effects.…”

“…Although FGIDs and CEIPV are frequent problems, few studies have analyzed the repercussions of CEIPV on physical health, especially the relationship between CEIPV and FGIDs. 17 , 18 , 19 Hence arose the objective of analyzing the association between children's exposure to intimate partner violence and FGIDs in school-age children in a cohort study.…”

An examination of effects of intimate partner violence on children: A cross‐sectional study conducted in a paediatric emergency unit in Turkey

“…Further, emotional violence was associated with an increased likelihood of diarrhoea, fever, and acute respiratory tract infection. Nakphong and von Ehrenstein (2020) discovered, in their study in Cambodia, that the mothers' experiences of emotional IPV was associated with diarrhoea, acute respiratory tract infection, and fever in the children. In our study, no relationship was found between mothers' IPV experiences and children's emergency diagnoses.…”

Behavioral problems in the children of women who are victims of intimate partner violence

“…As a result, these children may experience psychological problems, such as dysfunctional behaviors, anxiety, and hostility and may attempt suicide (Blair et al, 2015;Durand et al, 2011;Maddoux et al, 2015 ). In addition, this psychological and social stress can cause physical problems, including an increased risk of asthma (Bair-Merritt et al, 2015), diarrhea, and acute respiratory infections (Nakphong & von Ehrenstein, 2020).…”