Men as victims of intimate partner violence - a case report

Abstract

Intimate partner violence (IPV) is an important worldwide problem. Several studies on IPV found equivalent rates of assault perpetrated by men and women. The victim was a 30 years old three wheel driver, married with two children. He was assaulted by his wife with a club over the head and was admitted to the Teaching Hospital Karapitiya. A CT scan of the brain revealed a left parieto-occipital large extra dural haemorrhage (EDH), left parietal skull fracture with midline shift of 2cm and cerebral oedema. Left tempero-parietal craniotomy and evacuation of EDH was done. On examination, apart from the surgical incision, he had a sutured laceration 8cm in length over the left side of the head. Left sided 3rd cranial nerve palsy was also present. The idea of women being violent is a hard thing for many people to believe as it goes against the stereotype of the passive and helpless female. This, in spite of the fact that women are known to be more likely than men to commit child abuse and child murder. Findings of this case suggest that women use IPV against their male partners. Given the potentially serious physical and mental health consequences this can have, particularly for victims, research in this area needs to move beyond the argument over who perpetrates more IPV and who suffers more as a consequence of IPV.