Sexual Assault While in the Military: Violence as a Predictor of Cardiac Risk?

The purpose of this article is to determine whether known cardiac risk factors are more prevalent among women veterans who report having sustained sexual assault while in the military. We surveyed a random sample of 3,632 women veterans using Veterans Administration (VA) ambulatory care nationally. Obesity, smoking, problem alcohol use, sedentary lifestyle, and hysterectomy before age 40 were found to be more common in women reporting a history of sexual assault while in the military than in women without such history. An association between myocardial infarction and prior sexual assault history may be mediated in part by known cardiac risk factors.