Sexual abuse in people with spinal cord damage

Objectives: There are few studies of sexual abuse in people with spinal cord damage (SCD). Objective of this study was to determine the prevalence and impact of sexual abuse in SCD.

Design: Survey (web and paper-based).

Setting: Australia (August 2013–June 2014).

Participants: People with SCD (n?=?136); able-bodied controls (n?=?220).

Interventions: None.

Outcome measures: Spinal Cord Injury Secondary Conditions Scale, International SCI Quality of Life Basic Dataset, and the Physical Disability Sexual and Body Esteem scale. Questions regarding demographic and clinical characteristics, sex, sexual orientation, relationship status, disability, sexual interest and satisfaction, and sexual abuse.

Results: Most SCD participants were male (n?=?92, 67%), the average age was 46 years (SD?=?14) and they were median of 11 years (IQR 4–21) after SCD. Of these, 19% (n?=?26) reported sexual abuse. Females were much more likely to report being abused (odds ratio 3.3, 95%CI 1.5–7.4; χ ²=10.9, P?=?0.001). Participants reporting sexual abuse were younger (P?=?0.01) and more likely to have been abused before their SCD (69%). There was no significant difference between those with SCD who reported sexual abuse and those who did not regarding their quality of life as a whole (P?>?0.1). There was no difference regarding the reporting of sexual abuse between able-bodied and those with SCD (P?=?0.1).

Conclusion: Sexual abuse was relatively common and was not associated with an adverse relationship with the covariates assessed. Further research is needed to better determine the prevalence of sexual abuse in people with SCD and its impact.