Recent physical and sexual violence against adults with severe mental illness: a systematic review and meta-analysis

People with severe mental illness (SMI) have high prevalence of lifetime victimization, but little is known about the extent and risk of recent domestic/sexual violence. The objective was to synthesize evidence on prevalence, odds, and risk factors for recent violence against people with SMI, with a focus on domestic and sexual violence. Relevant studies were identified through literature searches in Medline, Psychinf, Embase (for studies published in 2010-2015), and through existing systematic reviews (for studies published in 2000-2014). The review included 30 studies (with 16 140 SMI participants), including six on domestic violence and 11 on sexual violence. Prevalence of recent domestic violence ranged from 15-22% among women and from 4-10% among men/mixed samples; with little evidence on risk compared with the general population. Median prevalence of sexual violence was 9.9% (IQR = 5.9-18.1%) in women and 3.1% (IQR = 2.5-6.7%) in men; with 6-fold higher odds of victimization compared with the general population. There was little evidence on risk factors for domestic or sexual violence. In conclusion, people with SMI have a high prevalence of recent domestic and sexual violence, but little is known about risk factors for these violence types, or extent of domestic violence victimization compared to the general population.