Skip to main content

Advertisement

SpringerLink
Log in

The Associations between Area of Residence, Sexual Violence Victimization, and Asthma Episodes among US Adult Women in 14 States and Territories, 2005–2007

  • Published:
Journal of Urban Health Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

Gaps in understanding of how area-based differences in exposure to violence are associated with asthma prevalence may limit the development of effective prevention programs and the identification of risk for asthma episodes. The current investigation examines the associations between sexual violence victimization and asthma episodes among US adult women across three different metropolitan settings. The association between sexual assault victimizations and asthma attacks in the past year was examined using data from the 2005, 2006, and 2007 Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System surveys. Cross-sectional analyses were based on adult women with current asthma (n = 4,099). Multivariate logistic regression models were used to identify associations between four categories of sexual violence victimization and asthma episodes across three categories of metropolitan and non-metropolitan settings. Our findings show that unwanted touching, attempted unwanted intercourse, forced unwanted intercourse, and any sexual violence victimization (touching, attempted intercourse, or forced intercourse) were significantly associated with asthma episodes (ORadj. = 3.67, 95% CI, 1.76–7.69; ORadj. = 1.77, 95% CI, 1.32–2.37; ORadj. = 2.24, 95% CI, 1.64–3.05, and ORadj. = 1.93, 95% CI, 1.47–2.53, respectively). While no significant differences in the associations between asthma episodes and metropolitan status were found, a significant interaction between non-metropolitan areas and attempted sexual intercourse was identified (ORadj = 0.53, 95% CI, 0.29–0.96). Sexual victimization appears to be an important, but understudied, correlate of asthma morbidity among adult women in the USA, suggesting that additional research is needed to better understand the associations between sexual violence, psychological distress, and asthma.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

References

  1. Akinbami L. Asthma Prevalence: Health Care Use and Mortality: United States, 2003–2005. Bethesda, MD: National Center for Health Statistics; 2006.

    Google Scholar 

  2. Mannino D, Home D, Akinbami L, Moorman J, Gwynn C, Redd S. Surveillance for Asthma-United States 1980–1999. Atlanta, GA: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention; 2002.

    Google Scholar 

  3. Federal Interagency Forum on Child and Family Statistics. America’s Children: Key National Indicators of Well-being. Washington, DC: US Government Printing Office; 2001.

    Google Scholar 

  4. Wright R, Mitchell H, Visness C, et al. Community violence and asthma morbidity: the inner city asthma study. Am J Public Health. 2004;94(4):625–632.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  5. Wright R, Steinbach S. Violence: an unrecognized environmental exposure that may contribute to greater asthma morbidity in high risk inner-city populations. Environ Health Perspect. 2001;9(10):1085–1089. doi:10.2307/3454965.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  6. Weil C, Wade S, Mauman L, Lynn H, Micthell H, Lavigne J. The relationship between psychosocial factors and asthma morbidity in inner city children with asthma. Pediatrics. 1999;104(6):1274–1280. doi:10.1542/peds.104.6.1274.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  7. Swahn M, Bossarte R. The associations between victimization, feeling unsafe and asthma episodes among US high school students. Am J Public Health. 2006;96(5):802–804. doi:10.2105/AJPH.2005.066514.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  8. Jeffrey J, Sternfeld I, Tager R. The association between childhood asthma and community violence, Los Angeles County, 2000. Public Health Rep. 2006;121:720–728.

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  9. Clougherty J, Levy J, Kubzansky L, et al. Synergistic effects of traffic-related air pollution and exposure to violence on urban asthma etiology. Environ Health Perspect. 2007;115(8):1140–1146.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  10. Loxton D, Schofield M, Hussain R, Mishra G. History of domestic violence and physical health in midlife. Violence Against Women. 2006;12:715–731. doi:10.1177/1077801206291483.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  11. Subramanian S, Ackerson L, Suramanyam M, Wright R. Domestic violence is associated with adult and childhood asthma prevalence in India. Int J Epidemiol. 2007;36:569–579. doi:10.1093/ije/dym007.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  12. Stein M, Barrett-Connor E. Sexual assault and physical health: findings from a population-based study of older adults. Psychosom Med. 2000;62:838–843.

    PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  13. Pleis J, Lethbridge-Cujku M. Summary Health Statistics for U.S. Adults: National Health Interview Survey, 2005. Bethesda, MD: National Center for Health Statistics; 2006.

    Google Scholar 

  14. Lehrer PM. Emotionally triggered asthma: a review of research literature and some hypotheses for self-regulation therapies. Appl Psychophysiol Biofeedback. 1998;23:13–41. doi:10.1023/A:1022170028979.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  15. Lehrer PM, Isenberg S, Hochron SM. Asthma and emotion: a review. J Asthma. 1993;30:5–21. doi:10.3109/02770909309066375.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  16. Lehrer PM, Feldman J, Giardino N, Song H, Schmaling K. Psychological aspects of asthma. J Consult Clin Psychol. 2002;70:691–711. doi:10.1037/0022-006X.70.3.691.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  17. CDC. Health Risks in the United States: Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System. Atlanta, GA: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention; 2007.

    Google Scholar 

  18. CDC. Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance Survey [online]. Available at http://www.cdc.gov/brfss. Accessed on January 18, 2008.

  19. Sandberg S, Jarvenpaa S, Penttinen A, McaCann DC. Asthma exacerbations in children immediately following a stressful life event. Thorax. 2004;59(12):1046–1051. doi:10.1136/thx.2004.024604.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  20. Abbey A, Parkhill M, Koss M. The effects of frame of reference on responses to questions about sexual assault victimization and perpetration. Psychol Women Q. 2005;29(4):364–373. doi:10.1111/j.1471-6402.2005.00236.x.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  21. Koss M. Detecting the scope of rape—a review of prevalence research methods. J Interpers Violence. 1993;8(2):198–222. doi:10.1177/088626093008002004.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  22. Klinnert M. Evaluating the effects of stress on asthma: a paradoxical challenge. Eur Respir J. 2003;22:574–575. doi:10.1183/09031936.03.00067903.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  23. Sandel S, Wright R. When home if where the stress is: expanding the dimensions of housing that influence asthma morbidity. Arch Dis Child. 2006;91(11):942–948. doi:10.1136/adc.2006.098376.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  24. Wisnivesky J, Sampson H, Berns S, Kattan M, Halm E. Lack of association between indoor allergen sensitization and asthma morbidity in inner-city adults. J Allergy Clin Immunol. 2007;120(1):113–120. doi:10.1016/j.jaci.2007.03.044.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  25. Chen E, Miller G. Stress and inflammation in exacerbations of asthma. Brain Behav Immun. 2007;21:993–999.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  26. Wright R, Rodriquez M, Cohen S. Review of psychosocial stress and asthma: an integrated biopsychosocial model. Thorax. 1998;53:1066–1074.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Psychiatry, University of Rochester, 300 Crittenden Blvd, Box PSYCH, Rochester, NY, 14262, USA

    Robert M. Bossarte

  2. Institute of Public Health, Georgia State University, Atlanta, GA, USA

    Monica H. Swahn

  3. Department of Community Medicine, West Virginia University, Morgantown, WV, USA

    Ekta Choudhary

  4. Injury Control Research Center, West Virginia University, Morgantown, WV, USA

    Ekta Choudhary

Authors
  1. Robert M. Bossarte
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Monica H. Swahn
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  3. Ekta Choudhary
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Robert M. Bossarte.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Cite this article

Bossarte, R.M., Swahn, M.H. & Choudhary, E. The Associations between Area of Residence, Sexual Violence Victimization, and Asthma Episodes among US Adult Women in 14 States and Territories, 2005–2007. J Urban Health 86, 242–249 (2009). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11524-008-9340-5

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11524-008-9340-5

Keywords

Search

Navigation