Abstract

Objective: The COVID-19 pandemic increased the risk of interpersonal violence. We investigated the association between lifetime interpersonal violence experience and risk of post–COVID-19 condition (the persistence of symptoms of COVID-19 and severity of health problems associated with COVID-19 that last a few weeks, months, or years) among women with lifetime interpersonal violence experience.   Methods: Women participants aged ≥18 years in Kentucky’s Wellness, Health & You—COVID-19 study completed online quantitative surveys about the impacts of the pandemic, developing COVID-19, and symptoms of post–COVID-19 condition. We conducted cross-sectional analyses estimating rate ratios of developing COVID-19 and symptoms of post–COVID-19 condition during the pandemic (October 13, 2020–February 28, 2022).   Results: Of the analytic sample (N = 938), 342 (36.5%) disclosed a history of lifetime interpersonal violence. Compared with women with no lifetime interpersonal violence experience, women with lifetime interpersonal violence experience had significantly more distress because of the pandemic, defined as family financial challenges (P = .001), symptoms of mental health challenges (P <  .001), and negative coping behaviors (P <  .001). While experiencing lifetime interpersonal violence was not significantly associated with either receiving COVID-19 vaccinations (adjusted rate ratio [aRR] = 1.10; 95% CI, 0.75-1.61) or developing COVID-19 (aRR = 1.15; 95% CI, 0.92-1.44), experiencing lifetime interpersonal violence was associated with an increased rate of developing symptoms of post–COVID-19 condition (aRR = 2.09; 95% CI, 1.19-3.65).   Conclusion: Symptoms of post–COVID-19 condition may be linked to lifetime interpersonal violence experience, possibly through stress or violence-associated trauma. Future research is needed to assess the negative effects of the pandemic, prioritizing people with lifetime interpersonal violence experience.

Document Type

Article

Publication Date

2025

Notes/Citation Information

© 2024, Association of Schools and Programs of Public Health. All rights reserved.

Digital Object Identifier (DOI)

https://doi.org/10.1177/00333549241236638

Funding Information

The authors disclosed receipt of the following financial support for the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article: This publication was supported by the National Center for Advancing Translational Sciences, National Institutes of Health (NIH), through grant no. UL1TR001998. The content is solely the responsibility of the authors and does not necessarily represent the official views of NIH.

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