Sexual assault, workplace sexual harassment, or both may put women at higher long-term risk of developing hypertension.
Sexual Assault on Women - After Effects on the Brain
Women in their midlife who are traumatized especially due to sexual assaults, face cerebral and cardiovascular threats in their later age.
Women in their midlife who are traumatized especially due to sexual assaults, face cerebral and cardiovascular threats in their later age.
‘Sexual assault, workplace sexual harassment, or both may put women at higher long-term risk of developing hypertension when compared to women who have no history of these types of trauma.’
Nearly 43% of women in the U.S., aged 20 years and older have high blood pressure, or hypertension (130/80 mm Hg or higher) as per the American Heart Association’s Heart Disease and Stroke Statistics. “We know that experiences of sexual violence in the form of sexual assault and workplace sexual harassment are common, and that women are disproportionately victims of such violence, with 13-44% of women reporting sexual assault and up to 80% of women reporting workplace sexual harassment. However, exposure to sexual violence is not widely recognized as a contributor to women’s cardiovascular health. We felt it was important to investigate the relationship among common forms of sexual violence with the risk of developing hypertension. These links could help in the early identification of factors that influence women’s long-term cardiovascular health,” says study author Rebecca B. Lawn, PhD, a postdoctoral research fellow in epidemiology at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health in Boston.
The team analyzed data over seven years beginning with a 2008 follow-up of the Nurses’ Health Study II (an on-going cohort study of U.S. women). It was found that about 1 in 5 (nearly 7,100) of the women self-reported, they had developed hypertension, which was validated with medical records.
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Refusal skills training before age 18 may reduce risk of sexual assault in college, showed new study.
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“Our finding that experiencing both sexual assault and workplace sexual harassment had the highest risk of hypertension underscores the potential compounding effects of multiple sexual violence exposures on women’s long-term cardiovascular health,” says Lawn.
Military Sexual Assault Linked to PTSD and Depression in LGB Veterans: Study
The experience of military sexual assault was directly linked to the presence of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and depression among LGB veterans.
The experience of military sexual assault was directly linked to the presence of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and depression among LGB veterans.
Females in India Nearly 40 Times More Likely to Die After Assault
Men tend to be more badly affected than women after sustaining trauma, but it's not clear whether this is due to differences in injury type or in recovery.
Men tend to be more badly affected than women after sustaining trauma, but it's not clear whether this is due to differences in injury type or in recovery.
