1/3 American women with ulna fractures may have suffered domestic violence

1/3 American women with ulna fractures may have suffered domestic violence. American radiologists: 1/3 of women with ulna fractures may have suffered domestic violence and should intervene as soon as possible.   A 22-year-old woman from Shandong Province, Fang Yangyang, was abused to death by her husband’s infertility, the Tibetan girl Lamu was burned extensively by her ex-husband using gasoline, and the woman Xiaoyan jumped from the second floor to escape her husband’s violence… Domestic violence has become a high frequency of public opinion this year word.

These events that have been fermented and exposed on the Internet are just the tip of the iceberg. Many women, because of fear and fear, never dared to tell others about nightmarish experiences. Is there any way to find these women and help them as soon as possible?

At the recent online meeting of the Radiological Society of North America, a new study showed that as many as one-third of adult women who have fractured the forearm and ulna without displacement may have suffered domestic violence. The researchers said that this finding emphasizes the need to screen women with ulnar fractures to detect possible intimate violence as early as possible.

The ulna is the stable bone of the forearm, which is the longer one on the inside of the two forearm bones. When people raise their hands to protect their faces from being hit by objects, the ulna is most vulnerable to fractures. Until recently, doctors did not associate it with domestic violence.

Bharti Khurana, director of emergency musculoskeletal radiology at Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Boston, and David Sing, an orthopedic surgeon at Boston Medical Center, led a team to search for electronic fracture records among women aged 18 to 50 in six hospitals. They found that 62 patients (average age 31 years) had forearm ulna fractures. Among them, 12 have been determined to be caused by intimate partner violence. Eight people suspected that it was caused by intimate partner violence.

Among the eight people suspected of having experienced domestic violence, four said it was a ulna fracture caused by a fall. But Dr. Khurana said that a fall is more likely to cause a fracture of the radius of another forearm bone than the ulna. It is possible that these women have suffered violence but dare not speak out.

In addition, the study also found that only about 40% of fractured women who have experienced violence or suspected violence have completed formal violence screening.

In view of this, the researchers suggest that radiologists, emergency doctors or orthopedic surgeons should understand that ulnar fractures often occur in domestic violence, and attention should be paid when seeing female patients with this condition. If possible, check the patient’s clinical history to see if there is anything suspicious.

Khurana said that the link between ulna fractures and domestic violence will help provide early intervention, and she will continue to study the relationship between radiological signs and intimate partner violence. “It’s like a radiologist who wants to diagnose cancer as early as possible. This is one thing. If we find it early, we have a better chance to break the cycle of violence.”