Intimate partner violence is common, affecting 25% of women and 11% of men at some time during their lives.
Studies show that 11% to 22% of the women seen in primary care offices are currently experiencing physical abuse. The same is true of 12% to 35% of emergency room visits for women, and 7% to 20% of pregnant women.
According to the National Violence Against Women Survey and review done by the U.S. Department of Justice, there is wide variability in the reported incidence of intimate partner violence in today's literature.
Initial clinical trials have found prevalence from 10 to 30% where concerted efforts have implemented direct respectful routine screenings.
Battered women remain underdiagnosed by the medical community generally, and by primary care physicians specifically. As few as 1 in 20 battered women are correctly diagnosed by the physicians to whom they turn for help.
Recent reports on domestic violence during pregnancy have documented that 7% to 20% of abused women experienced abuse during pregnancy, including White, African American, and Hispanic women and both adult and teen mothers.
Bullock and McFarlane reported 26% of pregnant teens had experienced physical abuse, and about 65% of the abused, pregnant teens had not told anyone about the abuse.
