Greetings from the National Library of Medicine and MedlinePlus.gov

Regards to all our listeners!

I'm Rob Logan, Ph.D. senior staff National Library of Medicine for Donald Lindberg, M.D, the Director of the U.S. National of Medicine.

Here is what's new this week in MedlinePlus.

To listen to Dr. Lindberg's comments, click here

A Canadian study suggests screening for intimate partner violence (or domestic violence) does not impact its reoccurrence, or result in an improved quality of life for adult women – when screening is part of routine clinical care.

The study, recently published in the Journal of the American Medical Association found no differences in the reoccurrence of intimate partner violence between clinically screened and non-screened women after 18 months of follow up. While quality of life scores improved slightly for the screened participants, the study of more than 7,500 adults found scores among non-screened women were statistically similar.

The study's 12 authors also found no short-term harm resulted from screening procedures.

The study is a rare example where an absence of statistical significance becomes important because of the findings' social and clinical implications. Most research in medical journals is grounded in statistically significant differences, or statistically significant associations among the study's outcome variables.

The current study's findings are based on a comparative study of 3,271 adult women – whose physician received the results of a self-completed, eight item, Women Abuse Screening Tool (that measured physical, sexual, and emotional abuse in the preceding 12 months) – and 3,472 women whose physician did not have access to screening information. All study participants also completed a 26 item quality-of-life survey recommended by the World Health Organization.

Participants were recruited from 26 diverse medical care sites in Ontario, Canada (each are part of Canada's national health care system) from July 2005 through December 2006.

In an editorial that accompanies the JAMA study, its two authors explain the Canadian study suggests that universal screening, or routinely asking all adult women patients about abuse, were not found to be clinically beneficial. The editorial's authors also note the study suggests that universal screening with passive referrals to community services is not an adequate response to domestic abuse, or violence in intimate relationships.

However, the editorial's authors add the Canadian study only measured if screening and passive referrals were beneficial – rather than linking screening to accompanying social support and interventions.

The editorial's authors suggest a successful reduction in domestic violence may require screening as well as layers of social support. The authors explain that some social support layers include:

• Providing emotional support (or caring for the victim)
• Tangible assistance, or a clinical, or other personal intervention Information (providing information and education)
• Providing a range of clinical and other advice
• And intervening to prevent substance abuse within a home, or domestic setting.

Overall, the editorial's authors note the current study underscores a need for research that compares the effectiveness of screening in combination with clinical and social interventions.

MedlinePlus.gov's domestic violence health topic page explains (and we quote) that 'domestic violence is a serious problem. It is a common cause of injury. Victims may suffer physical injuries such as bruises or broken bones. They may suffer emotionally from depression, anxiety or social isolation' (end of quote).

MedlinePlus.gov's domestic violence health topic page provides information about diagnosis/symptoms, prevention/screening, and coping.

Among helpful websites, there is a link to a site titled, 'Domestic Violence Safety Plan,' provided by the American Bar Association. This site provides easy-to-understand suggestions about what to do when you are threatened or attacked at home, how to protect yourself at home, how to make your children safer, and how to remain safe at work or outside of your home.

In addition, the site provides insights about some of the existing U.S. laws to assist domestic violence victims. For example, the site explains the range of options available to a judge to protect victims of domestic violence.

A website devoted to intimate partner violence (the focus of the Canadian study) also is provided by the U.S. Centers for Disease Controls and Prevention. It is available in the 'specific conditions' section. Additional resources include links to the latest relevant research, ongoing clinical trials, and information tailored for teens, men, women, and seniors.

To find MedlinePlus.gov's domestic violence health topic page, type 'domestic violence' in the search box on MedlinePlus.gov's home page. Then, click on 'domestic violence (National Library of Medicine).'

Before I go, this reminder……. MedlinePlus.gov is authoritative,….. free…. does not accept advertising …and is written to help you.   

To find MedlinePlus.gov, just type in 'MedlinePlus.gov' in any web browser, such as Firefox, Safari, Netscape, or Explorer.

We encourage you to use MedlinePlus and please recommend it to your friends. MedlinePlus is available in English and Spanish.

Your comments about this or any of our podcasts are always welcome. We welcome suggestions about future topics too!

Please email Dr. Lindberg anytime at: NLMDirector@nlm.nih.gov

That's NLMDirector (one word) @nlm.nih.gov

A written transcript of recent podcasts is available. Just click on the 'Director's comments' link on MedlinePlus' home page.

The National Library of Medicine is one of 27 institutes and centers within the National Institutes of Health. The National Institutes of Health is part of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.

A disclaimer -- the information presented in this program should not replace the medical advice of your physician. You should not use this information to diagnose or treat any disease without first consulting with your physician or other health care provider.

It was nice to be with you….

Dr. Lindberg returns in the future.

To our readers:

By popular request, we now provide URLs of web sites cited in 'Director's Comments' within the transcripts. However, we cannot guarantee that you will able to access information on all non-NLM web sites, especially those that link to the original source of biomedical journal articles. Please contact your local librarian for assistance if you require copies of journal articles.
  
Many thanks for reading and listening to 'Director's Comments.'