The Relationship between Wife Abuse and Mental Health in Women Experiencing Domestic Violence referred to the Forensic Medical Center of Shiraz

Background and Objectives: Neglecting women's health and the domestic violence prevailing against them can cause a variety of mental and even physical diseases that threaten the health of the family. Disruptions in the life pattern of women and mothers have adverse health effects for both the family and the entire society. The present study was conducted to investigate the relationship between wife abuse and mental health in female victims of domestic violence referred to the Forensic Medical Center of Shiraz. Materials and Methods: The present cross-sectional, descriptive, analytical study was conducted over three months in 2013 on 197 women with abusive husbands referred to the Forensic Medical Center of Shiraz. The study data collection tools included a demographic information questionnaire, the General Health Questionnaire (GHQ-28) and a standard violence against women questionnaire. Cronbach's alpha was measured to assess the data collection tools' reliability. Data were analyzed in SPSS-18. Results: The mean age of the study subjects was reported as 30.42±6.72. More than 50 percent of the women had been victim to domestic violence and suffered from disorders in all the aspects of general health (P<0.05). There was a positive relationship between domestic violence and all the aspects of general health. In other words, violence of any kind was a predictor of general health disorders (P<0.05). Domestic violence was found to have the greatest effect on the incidence of depression and anxiety. Conclusion: The present study revealed the psychological consequences of wife abuse and violence against women and confirmed the damaging effect of violence on women's mental health. In addition to imposing heavy costs on the society for providing healthcare and medications, mental health disorders in women are also a burden for the family life and the children's upbringing

Attitude of Reproductive Age Women towards Factors Affecting Induced Abortion in Hamedan, Iran

Background & aim: Abortion is the third leading cause of maternal mortality. The attitude of women towards abortion is one of the most important factors involved in this issue. This study aimed to evaluate the attitude of women of reproductive age towards induced abortion. Methods This cross-sectional study was performed on 450 women of reproductive age in Fatemieh Hospital in Hamedan, Iran in 2014. Data was collected using abortion attitude scale consisting of five sections: socioeconomic status, family status, maternal and fetal health status, psycho -cultural background, and fertility status. Mean score less than three in each domain was considered as negative attitude, while scores higher or equal to three indicated positive attitude towards induced abortion. To analyze the data, logistic regression analysis, Chi-square and Fisher's exact tests were performed using SPSS version 21. P value of less than 0.05 was considered statistically significant. Results: In this study, induced abortion had no significant relationship with family status, maternal and fetal health, and fertility domains (82.1%, 77.3%, and 64.4%, respectively). A relationship was observed between induced abortion and socioeconomic and psycho-cultural domains (61.8% and 56%, respectively). Logistic regression analysis showed that the predictors of induced abortion were the attitude towards the effect of abortion on the health of mother and fetus (P= 0.01), as well as the psychocultural status of the mothers (P= 0.02). Conclusion: Evaluation of the results indicated a strong belief in the majority of the participants in psychocultural and socioeconomic domains as the most significant predictive factors for induced abortion. Since it is difficult to alter the socioeconomic and psychocultural domains of individuals, changes are recommended in predominant attitudes towards induced abortion

Injury burden in individuals aged 50 years or older in the Eastern Mediterranean region, 1990–2019: a systematic analysis from the Global Burden of Disease Study 2019

Background: Injury poses a major threat to health and longevity in adults aged 50 years or older. The increased life expectancy in the Eastern Mediterranean region warrants a further understanding of the ageing population's inevitable changing health demands and challenges. We aimed to examine injury-related morbidity and mortality among adults aged 50 years or older in 22 Eastern Mediterranean countries. Methods: Drawing on data from the Global Burden of Diseases, Injuries, and Risk Factors Study (GBD) 2019, we categorised the population into adults aged 50–69 years and adults aged 70 years and older. We examined estimates for transport injuries, self-harm injuries, and unintentional injuries for both age groups, with sex differences reported, and analysed the percentage changes from 1990 to 2019. We reported injury-related mortality rates and disability-adjusted life-years (DALYs). The Socio-demographic Index (SDI) and the Healthcare Access and Quality (HAQ) Index were used to better understand the association of socioeconomic factors and health-care system performance, respectively, with injuries and health status in older people. Healthy life expectancy (HALE) was compared with injury-related deaths and DALYs and to the SDI and HAQ Index to understand the effect of injuries on healthy ageing. Finally, risk factors for injury deaths between 1990 and 2019 were assessed. 95% uncertainty intervals (UIs) are given for all estimates. Findings: Estimated injury mortality rates in the Eastern Mediterranean region exceeded the global rates in 2019, with higher injury mortality rates in males than in females for both age groups. Transport injuries were the leading cause of deaths in adults aged 50–69 years (43·0 [95% UI 31·0–51·8] per 100 000 population) and in adults aged 70 years or older (66·2 [52·5–75·5] per 100 000 population), closely followed by conflict and terrorism for both age groups (10·2 [9·3–11·3] deaths per 100 000 population for 50–69 years and 45·7 [41·5–50·3] deaths per 100 000 population for ≥70 years). The highest annual percentage change in mortality rates due to injury was observed in Afghanistan among people aged 70 years or older (400·4% increase; mortality rate 1109·7 [1017·7–1214·7] per 100 000 population). The leading cause of DALYs was transport injuries for people aged 50–69 years (1798·8 [1394·1–2116·0] per 100 000 population) and unintentional injuries for those aged 70 years or older (2013·2 [1682·2–2408·7] per 100 000 population). The estimates for HALE at 50 years and at 70 years in the Eastern Mediterranean region were lower than global estimates. Eastern Mediterranean countries with the lowest SDIs and HAQ Index values had high prevalence of injury DALYs and ranked the lowest for HALE at 50 years of age and HALE at 70 years. The leading injury mortality risk factors were occupational exposure in people aged 50–69 years and low bone mineral density in those aged 70 years or older. Interpretation: Injuries still pose a real threat to people aged 50 years or older living in the Eastern Mediterranean region, mainly due to transport and violence-related injuries. Dedicated efforts should be implemented to devise injury prevention strategies that are appropriate for older adults and cost-effective injury programmes tailored to the needs and resources of local health-care systems, and to curtail injury-associated risk and promote healthy ageing. Funding: Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation