Weighted Mean Odds Ratio Research Articles

Sexual assault history and headache: five general population studies.

Headache is a common and disabling symptom. Although it is known that sexual assault is associated with a wide range of physical symptoms, little research has addressed its association with headache. The present study evaluated this association in five independent samples of randomly selected household residents (pooled N = 7502). The weighted mean odds ratio (OR) linking sexual assault and headache, controlling age and education, was 1.70 (95% confidence interval [CI] = 1.40, 2.07). Odds ratios were homogeneous across studies, and were similar regardless of participants' gender or ethnicity. Persons sexually assaulted in childhood consistently had greater odds of headache than those first assaulted in adulthood (OR = 1.89, 95% CI = 1.19, 2.99). These results indicate that sexual assault, particularly in childhood, is associated with headache.

Intimate Partner Violence as a Risk Factor for Mental Disorders: A Meta-Analysis

This article reviews literature on the prevalence of mental health problems among women with a history of intimate partner violence. The weighted mean prevalence of mental health problems among battered women was 47.6% in 18 studies of depression, 17.9% in 13 studies of suicidality, 63.8% in 11 studies of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), 18.5% in 10 studies of alcohol abuse, and 8.9% in four studies of drug abuse. These were typically inconsistent across studies. Weighted mean odds ratios representing associations of these problems with violence ranged from 3.55 to 5.62, and were typically consistent across studies. Variability was accounted for by differences in sampling frames. Dose-response relationships of violence to depression and PTSD were observed. Although research has not addressed many criteria for causal inferences, the existing research is consistent with the hypothesis that intimate partner violence increases risk for mental health problems. The appropriate way to conceptualize these problems deserves careful attention.