Intimate male partner violence impairs immune control over herpes simplex virus type 1 in physically and psychologically abused women.

OBJECTIVE

Intimate partner violence (IPV) against women is a worldwide problem and a cause of significant distress and threat to health. Studies have focused mainly on mental health, and few have considered the effect on physiological systems. The aim of this research was to determine whether IPV also compromises the immune system, as evidenced by a decrease in immune regulation over herpes simplex virus type 1 (HSV-1), the latent virus that causes cold sores.

METHODS

Physically abused (N = 47) and psychologically abused women (N = 27) were compared with nonabused control women (N = 37). Information about sociodemographic characteristics, lifetime history of victimization, and mental health status (depression, anxiety, and posttraumatic stress disorder) was obtained through structured interviews. Salivary samples were collected on two occasions, and the capacity to neutralize live HSV-1 virus was tested with a bioassay. In addition, salivary levels of HSV-1-specific antibody and total IgA were determined by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay.

RESULTS

Physically abused women had the lowest virus neutralization, significantly below the other two groups, with the psychologically abused group intermediate. HSV-1-specific antibody also tended to be lower in physically abused women, but these values were not directly correlated with virus neutralization, suggesting that loss of other antiviral factors accounted for the reduced bioactivity. The effect of IPV on immune function was not mediated directly by mental health status.

CONCLUSION

These findings confirm that the stressful disturbance associated with IPV has important physiological consequences, which could impair health by increasing the likelihood of viral reactivation and reducing the ability to suppress virus proliferation.