Evaluating the functional impairment of assault survivors in a judicial context – A retrospective study

• Published in: Journal of forensic and legal medicine Vol. 19; no. 4; pp. 215 - 218
• Main Authors: Lefèvre, Thomas, MD, Briffa, Hugo, MD, Thomas, Guy, MD, Chariot, Patrick, MD
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: England Elsevier Ltd 01.05.2012; Churchill Livingstone Inc., Medical Publishers
• Subjects: Adolescent; Adult; Aged; Aged, 80 and over; Assault; Assaults; Child; Clinical outcomes; Crime Victims - legislation & jurisprudence; Detainee; Female; Forensic medicine; France; Humans; Interpersonal violence; Linear Models; Male; Middle Aged; Pathology; Police; Police custody; Police officer; Prisoners; Retrospective Studies; Survivor; Survivors; Total incapacity to work; Trauma; Work Capacity Evaluation; Wounds and Injuries - epidemiology; Young Adult; France; Interpersonal violence; Assault; Police custody; Detainee; Police officer; Total incapacity to work
• ISSN: 1752-928X; 1878-7487
• DOI: 10.1016/j.jflm.2011.12.028

Abstract Background The description of traumatic injuries and the outcome on functioning are major items of the evaluation of assault survivors. French law quantifies the seriousness of committed violence through the duration of the victims’ inability to fulfil their usual daily activities, in days of ‘Total incapacity to work’ (TIW). Physicians are provided with a limited number of recommendations. In this study, we searched for determinants of TIW. Methods We reviewed 1145 consecutives files of victims evaluated between 10/01/2010 and 11/22/2010. People reporting repeated assaults, or assessed more than 30 days after the facts were excluded. Data collected were: gender, age, TIW, type of traumatic injuries, time to evaluation, patient category, type of assailant, and presence of aggravating factors. Univariate associations with TIW were assessed, while generalised linear models including relevant covariables were proposed. Results The population (718 men, 427 women, median age 29) included 236 detainees, 74 police officers, and 835 other individuals. Mean duration of TIW was 4.3 days. The time to evaluation was correlated to TIW. Patient category (police officers, detainees, or other individuals), presence of traumatic injuries, and type of assailant were associated with TIW. In patients presenting no evidence of bone fracture, duration of TIW (2.0 days vs. 2.6 and 3.8, p  < 0.001) and time to evaluation (10.9 h vs. 21.2 and 58.5, p  < 0.001) differed in detainees, police officers, and other individuals. Conclusion We suggest that the outcome of assaults should be evaluated in similar conditions in all victims, including time to evaluation.