Groundbreaking research from Australia has delivered stark new evidence that survivors of intimate partner violence are suffering brain injuries with alarming frequency, mirroring the long-term trauma seen in professional athletes.
Study Reveals Shocking Prevalence of Dual Trauma
The Australian-first study, conducted by Monash University and published in the Journal of Neurotrauma, found that the vast majority of survivors who experienced brain injury within an abusive relationship had been subjected to a combination of assaults. The research showed that 84.2% of participants had endured both non-fatal strangulation and a mild traumatic brain injury or concussion.
Lead neuroscientist Georgia Symons explained that the team compared women from unsafe relationships with those who had not experienced such violence. "Essentially, what we found is that those with six or more brain injuries, head impacts or non-fatal strangulation had worse learning and memory outcomes," Symons stated.
Lasting Cognitive Impact and a Critical Gap in Care
The cognitive changes observed include significant impairments in memory, learning difficulties, slurred speech, and even seizures. While some participants did not meet the strict clinical threshold for impairment, they still reported substantial struggles in daily life compared to the control group.
This pattern bears a direct and worrying resemblance to the neurodegenerative risks now widely acknowledged in contact sports, where repeated concussions are linked to conditions like Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy (CTE). In 2024, two Australian women with histories of prolonged partner abuse were diagnosed with CTE, marking the country's first such cases linked to domestic violence.
Phillip Ripper, CEO of the prevention organisation No To Violence, highlighted a severe disparity in awareness and support. He pointed out that survivors of family violence are far less likely to be identified or receive specialist care than athletes, despite often enduring more severe and frequent trauma. "There is an enormous gap in understanding of the severe, often lifelong impacts these injuries have," Ripper said.
A Call for Urgent Action and Specialist Referrals
Experts are calling for a paradigm shift in how medical and support services screen for and respond to brain injury in abuse survivors. Research fellow Reidar Lystad, who has studied sports concussions, emphasised that domestic violence survivors now constitute a major at-risk group alongside athletes and military veterans.
"Literature from the sports field tells us that the cumulative impact of repeated trauma is associated with long-term health consequences like neurodegenerative diseases," Lystad noted. "There’s an increased risk of not just CTE, but also other forms of dementia."
The study underscores that non-fatal strangulation must be recognised as a critical red flag for potential brain injury. Advocates argue that preventing these devastating harms requires earlier identification of violent behaviour, consistent responses, and holding perpetrators accountable before patterns of coercive control escalate.
For victim-survivors, the path to recovery hinges on access to specialists with expertise in brain injury. As Lystad concluded, "It’s not an issue that’s unique to the sporting population any more."
