Sexual minority disparities in the relationship between interpersonal violence and co-occurring disorders

Background: The major aims of this study were to estimate rates of co-occurring adult onset alcohol use disorders (AUD) and depressive disorders (major depression and dysthymia) or post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) by sexual minority status and their association with adult onset traumatic intimate partner violence (IPV) and sexual assault (SA) among women in the U.S. Methods: The sample was drawn from two waves of the National Epidemiologic Surveys on Alcohol and Related Conditions. Rates and 95% confidence intervals were estimated and overall tests of significance (Pearson chi-square test; p<.05) were conducted. Results: Rates of AUD alone and co-occurring AUD and depressive disorders were significantly higher among heterosexual-identified women who have sex with women (WSW), bisexual-identified, and lesbian-identified women compared to exclusively heterosexual women. Similar patterns emerged for AUD and PTSD. Rates of co-occurring AUD and depressive disorders were higher among heterosexual WSW (38.0%; CI 21.9, 57.2) and bisexuals (37.0%; CI 16.2, 64.2) with IPV, and rates of AUD alone were higher among bisexuals (20.5%; CI 6.0, 50.9) and lesbians (35.6%; CI 13.6, 65.9) with IPV compared to their exclusively heterosexual counterparts (20.0%; CI 17.5, 22.8 and 14.8%; CI 12.5, 17.4, respectively). Comparable results were found among women with SA and in the parallel analysis of AUD and PTSD. Conclusions: These findings suggest that interpersonal violence is intricately linked to AUD and co-occurring disorders, particularly among sexual minority women. Future analyses will assess the temporal relationship between interpersonal violence and co-occurring disorders to better elucidate these complex experiences.