Domestic violence survivors show similar brain trauma to professional athletes, Australian-first study finds | Domestic violence
A first-ever Australian study has strengthened evidence that intimate partner violence can cause permanent brain damage, leading to memory loss, learning disabilities and other long-term cognitive problems.
A study by Monash University has been published Journal of Neurotrauma found that survivors of domestic violence who experienced repeated head blows or nonfatal strangulation were more likely to show behavioral and cognitive changes, including memory loss, seizures, and slurred speech.
The findings reflect what is widely accepted in professional sports that repeated concussions are linked to chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE) and other neurodegenerative conditions. Guardian Australia has published extensive reporting on concussion in sport, news contributing to the Senate inquiry and the AFL class action.
Researchers and advocates said the study highlights the need for greater awareness of brain injury when screening and supporting survivors of intimate partner violence so they can receive appropriate treatment.
Georgia Symons, a neuroscientist at Monash University and lead author of the study, said the study compared women who had experienced unsafe relationships with women who had not and found remarkable similarities with brain trauma seen in athletes.
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“In fact, we found that those who experienced six or more brain injuries, head blows, or nonfatal drownings had worse learning and memory outcomes than those who did not experience brain injuries from intimate partner violence,” Symons said.
Most participants said that although they did not meet the clinical threshold for impairment, they still experienced significant difficulties.
“They were struggling with memory loss, learning disabilities and cognitive function compared to the other group,” he said.
The study found that 84.2% of participants who experienced a brain injury in the context of intimate partner violence experienced both nonfatal strangulation and a mild traumatic brain injury or concussion.
A 2018 study found that 40% of domestic violence victims admitted to Victorian hospitals over a 10-year period suffered brain damage; But researchers cautioned that this figure is likely higher because most survivors do not seek medical care.
In 2024, two Australian women who had suffered years of partner abuse were diagnosed with CTE, the first case linked to domestic violence in the country.
Reidar Lystad, a research fellow at the Australian Institute of Health Innovation who studies sports concussions, said athletes and veterans, as well as survivors of domestic violence, were a group at greatest risk.
“The literature in sports tells us that the cumulative effect of repeated trauma is associated with long-term health consequences such as neurodegenerative diseases,” Lystad said.
“The risk increases not only for chronic traumatic encephalopathy but also for other types of dementia.”
Concerns are growing that the threshold for long-term brain damage may be lower than previously thought, but remains difficult to measure, Lystad said.
“If domestic violence is perpetrated over time, it becomes an increased risk for the development of neurodegenerative disease,” he said.
“Referral to specialists who specialize in brain injury is critical for these patients. This is no longer a problem specific to athletes.”
Phillip Ripper, chief executive of violence prevention organization No To Violence, said women who suffered sustained concussions and asphyxiation from domestic violence were far less likely to be detected, diagnosed or supported than athletes, despite often suffering more severe and repeated trauma.
“There is a tremendous gap in awareness and understanding of the serious, often life-long impacts these injuries have on surviving victims’ memory, cognition, well-being, and capacity to rebuild their lives,” Ripper said.
“Drowning, especially nonfatal, should be considered a critical warning sign.”
Ripper said these injuries could have been prevented if the violence was stopped at the source.
“Preventing these devastating harms requires governments and communities to act decisively—detecting men’s use of violence earlier, responding consistently, and holding men accountable before patterns of coercive control escalate into repeated brain injuries and life-threatening harm.”
national in Australia domestic violence counseling service on 1800 737 732. In the UK, call the national number. domestic violence helpline Call 0808 2000 247 or visit: Aid to Women. The domestic violence hotline in the US is 1-800-799-SAFE (7233). Other international helplines can be reached at: www.befrienders.org.
