Saturday, 15 January 2005 - 4:00 PM

This presentation is part of: Substance Abuse

Childhood Sexual Abuse and Psychosocial Risks among Women in Methadone Treatment

PURPOSE: This study examines the prevalence of childhood sexual abuse, posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), substance use, and intimate partner violence among a random sample of women in methadone treatment. This study also examines the relationships between childhood sexual abuse and the following psychosocial variables: PTSD, psychological distress, substance use, social support and intimate partner violence among participants.

METHODS: Face-to-face interviews were conducted with a random sample of 416 women in methadone treatment in New York City. Multiple imputation of missing data was conducted using AMELIA 2.1. Unadjusted and adjusted logistic regression analyses were conducted using S-Plus 6.1.

RESULTS: More than half of the participants (57.93%) reported a history of childhood sexual abuse; more than one-quarter (28.37%) met diagnostic criteria for PTSD. Marijuana was the most commonly used drug in the past six months (25.00%), followed by crack (23.80%), and the consumption of four or more alcoholic drinks (19.71). Prevalence of lifetime partner violence was nearly 90% (89.66%) and six month prevalence was 78.13%. Based on logistic regression analyses which adjusted for sociodemographic characteristics, women who reported a history of childhood sexual abuse were more likely to meet diagnostic criteria for PTSD (OR=1.88, CI=1.18, 3.01), to experience psychological distress (OR=3.03, CI=1.68, 5.45), to report smoking crack (OR=1.73, CI=1.05, 2.83) or consuming 4 or more alcoholic drinks in a six hour period (OR=1.83, CI=1.08, 3.08), and more likely to have experienced partner violence in their lifetimes (OR=3.02, CI=1.52, 6.00) and in the past six months (OR=1.77, CI=1.09, 2.89) in comparison to women who did not report childhood sexual abuse. Women who reported a history of childhood sexual abuse were less likely to report social support from family (OR=.61, CI=.40, .95) than those who did not report this history.

IMPLICATIONS: The high prevalence of childhood sexual abuse, PTSD, and intimate partner violence among women in methadone treatment supports the importance of intervention strategies to address these co-occurring issues. The numerous psychosocial risks associated with childhood sexual abuse suggest a particular vulnerability among this group of women which further underscores the need for specialized intervention.

FUNDING SOURCES: This research was supported by the following grants: R01DA11027 and 3T32MH014623-22S1.

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