NCJ Number
200768
Journal
Violence and Victims Volume: 18 Issue: 2 Dated: April 2003 Pages: 219-225
Date Published
April 2003
Length
7 pages
Annotation
This article examines whether women who report having sustained sexual assault while in the military are more likely to have known cardiac risk factors.
Abstract
Previous research has indicated that women veterans with a history of sexual assault while in the military were more than twice as likely to report having a heart attack than military women with no history of sexual assault. The authors explore whether women with self-reported military sexual assault have an increased prevalence of coronary risk factors, such as medical history, adverse health behaviors, and less intensive cardiac-related preventive medical care. A national sample of 3,632 women veterans who were identified as using Veterans Administration (VA) ambulatory care between 1994 and 1995 completed a self-administered questionnaire regarding sexual assault history and medical history. Results indicated that, after adjusting for age, women with a military history of sexual assault were more likely to be obese, to smoke, to use alcohol, to be sedentary, and to have had a hysterectomy before the age of 40. These women also exhibited a tendency toward higher levels of hypertension and were less likely to have had their cholesterol measured in the year preceding the study. The authors caution that a causal connection between cardiac risk and military sexual assault cannot be made with the current data; however, their data suggest a strong association between self-reported military sexual assault and medical conditions, health behaviors, and medical interventions relevant to coronary heart disease. References