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Previous Volume 332:437-443 February 16, 1995 Number 7 Next

	Since this article has no abstract, we have provided an extract of the first 100 words of the full text and any section headings.

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The metaphor of domestic violence as chronic disease is a useful one for clinicians. Studies of domestic violence over the life span suggest that, like many ongoing illnesses that are typified by periods of quiescence and exacerbation, abuse is more often episodic and recurrent than an isolated event.^1,2,3 This metaphor may also help to remind physicians that elderly patients are at risk; a report from the House Select Committee on Aging has suggested that between 1 million and 2 million older Americans experience mistreatment each year.⁴

Given the scope of this clinical and public health problem, what has been the . . . [Full Text of this Article]

Definitions and Epidemiologic Features

What Constitutes Abuse of the Elderly?

Incidence and Prevalence

Risk Factors

The Clinical Evaluation

General Considerations

Interviewing Techniques

Physical Findings

Management

Reporting Requirements

Institutional Abuse

Source Information

From the Geriatrics Unit, Division of General Internal Medicine, Department of Medicine, New York Hospital–Cornell University Medical Center, and the Amsterdam Nursing Home Corporation, New York (M.S.L.); and the Department of Human Development and Family Studies, Cornell University, Ithaca, N.Y. (K.P.).

Address reprint requests to Dr. Lachs at the Geriatrics Unit, Division of General Internal Medicine, New York Hospital–Cornell University Medical Center, 515 E. 71st St., Rm. S912, New York, NY 10021.

References

Related Letters:

Abuse and Neglect of Elderly Persons
O'Connor K. G., Finucane T. E., MacLean D. S., Lachs M.
Extract | Full Text  
N Engl J Med 1995; 333:70, Jul 6, 1995. Correspondence

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