COVID-19 lockdowns generated a crisis within a crisis for the victims of domestic violence, new study finds

• The proportion of physical abuse compared to verbal or emotional abuse was 80% higher in 2020 than in the past three years combined, a new study found.
• The study also found that while fewer people came forward with domestic abuse reports their injuries were more severe.
• In the past three years combined the Boston hospital where the study was conducted saw 16 deep injuries from intimate partner violence, in 2020, they saw 28.

The proportion of physical abuse compared to verbal or emotional abuse was 80% higher in 2020 than in the past three years combined, a new study published in the journal Radiology said.

The study also found that injuries were far more severe. The Los Angeles Times reported that as lockdown restrictions were lifted in Massachusetts, doctors at a large Boston hospital noticed that there were almost twice as many cases of domestic violence that lead to physical injury than in prior years.

However, the researchers at Brigham and Women's Hospital in Boston noted that fewer people came forward with domestic abuse reports compared to 2017-2019.

They identified 62 adults who sought help for physical and nonphysical abuse by an intimate partner between March 11 and May 3, which was less than the 104 people who sought help in 2019, the 106 people in 2018. and the 146 people in 2017.

However, while in the past three years the hospital saw 16 deep injuries from intimate partner violence, in 2020, they saw 28.

Dr. Bharti Khurana, a radiologist at Brigham and Women's Hospital, told the LA Times that the findings show that victims aren't seeking help until its severe.

"We know that high-risk physical abuse and severe physical injuries are highly associated with homicide," Khurana told the LA Times. However overwhelmed physicians have been by the pandemic, they should be on the lookout for evidence of domestic abuse, she added.

Dr. Babina Gosangi, a co-author of the study, told the LA Times that these injuries tended to be repeated punches, kicks, and hits to the abdomen area, a region less visible and identifiable to the average person than the face.

Business Insider previously reported that domestic violence affects more than 10 million people per year. Women are disproportionately more impacted, especially particularly young women, low-income women, and ethnic minorities, according to the National Organization for Women.

"This is the tip of the iceberg," Khurana told the Times. "We saw the worst 26 physical violence victims. That is very small compared to what is happening."