Intimate partner violence and its associated factors among married women with and without podoconiosis in Boreda district, Gamo zone, southern Ethiopia, 2024:  a comparative cross-sectional study

Intimate partner violence and its associated factors among married women with and without podoconiosis in Boreda district, Gamo zone, southern Ethiopia, 2024: a comparative cross-sectional study | Research Square window.SnipcartSettings = { analytics: { enabled: false } }; (function() { var accessVector = localStorage.getItem('access_vector') || ''; window.dataLayer = window.dataLayer || []; if (accessVector) { window.dataLayer.push({ user: { profile: { profileInfo: { snid: accessVector } } } }); } })(); (function(w,d,s,l,i){w[l]=w[l]||[];w[l].push({'gtm.start':new Date().getTime(),event:'gtm.js'});var f=d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0],j=d.createElement(s),dl=l!='dataLayer'?'&l='+l:'';j.async=true;j.src='https://www.googletagmanager.com/gtm.js?id='+i+dl;f.parentNode.insertBefore(j,f);})(window,document,'script','dataLayer','GTM-K279D39R'); Browse Preprints In Review Journals COVID-19 Preprints AJE Video Bytes Research Tools Research Promotion AJE Professional Editing AJE Rubriq About Preprint Platform In Review Editorial Policies Our Team Advisory Board Help Center Sign In Submit a Preprint Cite Share Download PDF Research Article Intimate partner violence and its associated factors among married women with and without podoconiosis in Boreda district, Gamo zone, southern Ethiopia, 2024: a comparative cross-sectional study Etenesh Kefelew, Gedife Ashebir, Chuchu Churko, Firehiwot Dawite, and 2 more This is a preprint; it has not been peer reviewed by a journal. https://doi.org/ 10.21203/rs.3.rs-7527298/v1 This work is licensed under a CC BY 4.0 License Status: Posted Version 1 posted You are reading this latest preprint version Abstract Background Intimate partner violence (IPV) is a serious public health and human rights violation which impacts approximately one in three women worldwide. Disabilities are 1.5 times more likely to be victims of violence than those without a disability. Some existing evidence suggests that women with disabilities are at higher risk of IPV. However, in endemic areas of neglected disabilities such as Podoconiosis and lymphatic filariasis (LF) there is limited evidence in Ethiopia. Objective To assess the prevalence of intimate partner violence and its associated factors among married women with and without Podoconiosis in Boreda district, Gamo zone, southern Ethiopia, 2022. Method An institution-based cross-sectional study was conducted among 403 mothers who were enrolled from December 1, 2022, to January 30, 2023. The total sample size was allocated proportionately to the number of women attending antenatal care at each public health facility. Thus, simple random sampling was applied. Kobo Toolbox was used for data collection and cleaning, which was then analyzed using IBM SPSS Version 25. Statistical significance was determined at a p -value of less than 0.05. Result In this study area, the prevalence of intimate partner violence among married women was 248(63.9%) (95% CI: 47.3–72.1). The associated factors of intimate partner violence were women from food insecure household ((AOR = 1.54, 95%CI (1.36–9.14)), non-autonomous women in decision making (AOR = 2.18, 95%CI (1.13–4.22)), low wealth index (AOR = 2.35, 95% CI ((1.03–4.29)), and having low social support (3.41, 95% CI ((1.20–9.67)). Conclusion The prevalence of Intimate Partner Violence was found high in Boreda district. There is a need of giving special attention for women living in rural area, Measures should be taken to raise community awareness, particularly among intimate partners, their families, and government officials. Therefore, it is essential to greatly empower women to increase women’s participation in decision making with resources and provide them significant prestige in the home. Intimate partner violence associated factors married women Podoconiosis Boreda district Figures Figure 1 Figure 2 Introduction According to WHO, disabled people are disadvantaged particularly in developing countries( 1 ), Women with disabilities are particularly at risk for severe violence, for sexual assault and disability-related neglect ( 2 , 3 ). In comparison to their male counterparts, women with disabilities are more likely to live in conditions characterized by poverty and isolation, increasing the likelihood that they experience violence without recourse ( 4 ). Further, compared to non-disabled women, the duration of exposure to violence may be longer among disabled women compared to non-disabled women ( 5 ). Intimate partner violence defined as physical violence, sexual violence, stalking, or psychological aggression (including coercive acts) by a current or former intimate partner, whether or not the partner is a spouse ( 1 ). It is one of the most common forms of violence against women ( 2 ). According to the abundant body of literature on IPV among women living with HIV, this is due to the intersection of disease-associated stigma and discrimination ( 6 – 8 ). This is of special importance in the case of Podoconiosis, given that people with Podoconiosis frequently experience stigma in their day to day interactions with family members ( 9 ). Despite the Universal Declaration of the Human Rights, as all people begin to be recognized regardless of age, sex, race, color, language, religion, or any other factors, women have continued to suffer from domestic violence and discrimination in their homes (10). Globally, one in every three women experienced IPV at some point in their life time (11). More women in Africa are subject to lifetime partner violence (45.6%) and sexual assault (11.9%) than women anywhere in the world (12). Systematic reviews done in Ethiopia showed a lifetime prevalence of all types of IPV against women ranging from 20–78%; physical violence, sexual violence and emotional violence being the most common cause (13). Violence towards women with disabilities is most commonly perpetrated by current or former intimate partners and estimates suggest that 54% of disabled women experience IPV in their lifetime (14). Particular physical injuries in women are recognized indicators of intimate partner violence (15). Experiencing IPV is not only a human rights violation, but also, affect all the domains of women’s lives such as self-esteem, productivity, autonomy, capacity to care for themselves and their children, ability to participate in social activities, and even death (16, 17). Furthermore, it has profound health and social consequences for women (18). Sexually and physically abused women by intimate partners have a risk of 50 to 70% to be affected by gynecological, central nervous system, and stress related problems (19, 20). In Ethiopia, violence against women is widely acknowledged to be of great concern, not just from a human rights perspective, but also from an economic and health viewpoint (21). And Ethiopia agreed on UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), including Target 5.2: Eliminate all forms of violence against all women and girls in public and private spheres (22). However, in endemic areas of neglected disabilities such as Podoconiosis women’s are victims of various, overlapping forms of IPV that negatively impact their health and wellbeing (23). A qualitative study in northern Ethiopia explores the relationship between IPV and Podoconiosis showed that Podoconiosis increases the frequency and severity of IPV (23). However, in Boreda district southern region, Podoconiosis is highly endemic with female to male ratio of 3.2:1(24). In spite of this, there had never been a study on IPV in the area. This is important both for improving diseases outcomes and for diminishing IPV prevalence in the area. With this purpose, this study aimed to assess the prevalence of intimate partner violence and associated factors among married women with and without Podoconiosis in Boreda district, Gamo zone, southern Ethiopia, 2024 comparative cross sectional study. Methods and Materials Study design and Study setting A community based comparative cross-sectional study design was conducted in Boreda district, Gamo zone, Southern Ethiopia. Boreda is one of the districts in Gamo zone with high number of lymphedema case. It is bordered on the Southeast by Mirab Abaya, on the Southwest by Chencha, on the west by Kucha, and on the North by the Wolayita Zone. There is about 1084 lymphedema cases reported in the study area (25). The district has 29 kebeles (an aggregate of villages and the smallest administrative unit in Ethiopia). Of the total kebele, 10 were endemic for Podoconiosis. The proportion of Podoconiosis among females was 76.2% with female to male ratio of (3.2:1) (26). Study Population There were two groups comprising a) married women who were living with Podoconiosis, b) women without Podoconiosis. All married women who have intimate partner in Boreda district were included. Mentally ill women or having any other severe illness which hindered the client from being interviewed were excluded. Sample size and sampling procedure The sample size for this study was determined using a formula for estimation of two population proportion using Epi info software version 7 with the assumptions of 95% confidence level, 80% power, percent of IPV among unexposed( those with low wealth index) 23.5%, percent of IPV among exposed(those with high wealth index 38.6%(27), the ratio of unexposed to exposed women (r = 2),. The sample size calculated using these assumptions was 353. With consideration of a nonresponse rate of 10%, a total sample of 388(130:258) women was included in the study. Randomly selected endemic kebele in the district was included for data collection. Then, number of married women with podoconiosis cases in each kebele was identified by health extension workers. The sample size was allocated proportionally to the size of cases in the selected kebeles (Fig. 1). Finally, the study subjects were selected by using simple random sampling technique and after selected cases interviewed, the two nearest (in distance) unaffected women was selected and interviewed. In a situation when a household has two or more eligible subjects, only one was selected by lottery method. Study variable Dependent variable Intimate partner violence (present/absent) Independent variable Women characteristics age, religion, residence, educational status, occupational status, family size, age at first marriage, fertility desire Partner characteristics Age, Occupation, substance use, educational status, relationship duration Household characteristics Wealth index, Access to media, household food security, Social support, decision-making power Data collection methods A questionnaire was adapted from a study done in Ethiopia to assess the reliability of the tools for the assessment of domestic violence against women in a low-income country settings (28–30). The structured questionnaire was adapted from the WHO’s multi-country study on women’s health and domestic violence (19). The structured questionnaires were prepared first in English and then translated to the local language (Gamogna). The wording of the questionnaires was adapted to be clear and unambiguous. In order to maintain consistency in the translation with the English version, the questionnaire was back-translated into English by another language expert. The contents of the questionnaire included socio-demographic variables of women and their partner, household characteristics. Respondents was categorized as having experienced IPV if they reported experiencing at least one act of IPV. Social support was assessed through face-to-face interview using pretested and standardized tools (Oslo Scale) (31). To assess for the household food insecurity, the food insecurity experience scale developed by FAO (32) was used. Which is validated for use in different social contexts (33, 34). HEWs was recruited for data collection and they was supervised by four MSc holder health workers. The principal investigators overseen the whole activity and coordinate the process. Measurement and operational definition Intimate Partner Violence (IPV) If the respondent says “yes” to any one of the ranges of sexually, emotionally, physically and controlling behaviour or any combination of these coercive acts used against married women, within the last year, it is considered intimate partner violence(35, 36). Podoconiosis in this study podoconiosis defined as podoconiosis of lower leg present for more than 1 year in a resident of podoconiosis endemic area, for which other causes- e.g. onchocerciasis, leprosy, Milroy syndrome, heart and liver failures have been excluded (37). Women’s decision-making autonomy This is one of the key indicators that measure the level of women’s involvement in household decision-making regarding her own health care, major household purchases and visits to her family or relatives (38). Food secure when a household experiences none of the food insecurity conditions (those who answer “no” to all the questions about food insecurity-related experiences) (32). Food insecure a household experiences at least one of the food insecurity conditions, mild to severe (those who answer “yes” to at least one of the food insecurity-related experiences) (32). Social support Support at time when difficulties and critical conditions like financial, social, and psychological, assessed by Oslo-3 social support scales which has total scores of 14 and classified into three broad categories. According to this respondents who score 3–8 was an indication of as having poor social support, those who will score 9–11 was an indication of as having moderate social support and those who score 12–14 was indication of as having strong social support(39). Data processing and analysis The collected data was cleaned and edited, then analyzed by using SPSS version 25. Descriptive statistics using frequencies, percentages, mean, and standard deviations was used to describe findings. Bivariate analysis using logistic regression was done for the variables that fulfill the assumptions and all explanatory variables that have association with the outcome variable at p-value of less than 0.25 was selected as candidates for multivariable analysis. Finally, those variables with p-<0.05 were considered as statistically significant. Model fitness was checked using Hosmer and Lemeshow goodness of fitness test and it was statically non-significant (0.81). Therefore, we concluded that the model fits. Multicollinearity was investigated using VIF, and showed no Multicollinearity as none of the variables’ VIF was more than or equal to ten. Results Sociodemographic characteristics of study participant A total of 388 participants fully responded to the questionnaires, yielding a response rate of 100%. The mean age of respondents was 47.57 years (SD ± 0.26). Most of the women were without podoconosis 258(66.5%). Approximately 366(94.3%) participants had no formal education, followed by 15(3.87%) who attended primary school. Approximately 261 (67.3%) were protestant, 88 (22.6%) were orthodox, regarding the family size, most 311(80.2%) had more than five family size, and all of the participants had rural residence (Table 1 ). Table 1 Socio demographic characteristics of participants in Boreda district, Gamo zone, Southern Ethiopia, 2025. (*others = Merchant and Day labourer) Variable Category Women All women (n = 388) Frequency (%) Podoconiosis affected (n = 130) Frequency (%) Podoconiosis unaffected (n = 258) Frequency (%) Age 31–40 33(25.4) 78(30.2) 111(28.6) 41–50 40(30.8) 124(95.4) 164(42.3) Above 50 57(43.8) 56(21.7) 113(29.1) Religion Orthodox 41(31.5) 47(18.2) 88(22.6) Protestant 78(60) 183(70.9) 261(67.3) Adventist 11(8.5) 28(10.8) 39(10.1) Educational status No formal education 124(95.4) 242(93.7) 366(94.3) Primary 6(4.6) 9(3.5) 15(3.87) secondary & above - 7(2.7) 7(1.8) Occupational status Housewife 124(95.4) 249(96.5) 373(96.1) Other 6(4.6) 69(26.7) 75(19.3) Family size = 5 89(68.5) 222(86.2) 311(80.2) Fertility desire in the future No need 118(90.7) 240(93.0) 358(92.3) 1–2 9(6.9) 12(4.7) 21(5.4) 3–4 3(2.3) 6(2.3) 9(2.3) Age at first marriage =18 41(31.5) 92(35.7) 133(34.3) Partner characteristics Most of partners 104(26.8%) had age of above 35 years. Most of 373(96.1%) partners are farmer. Approximately 251(64.7%) participants had no formal education, followed by 124(31.9%) who attended primary school. And only 56(14.4) had a history of substance use (Table 2 ). Table 2 partners characteristics of the study participants in Boreda district, Gamo zone, Southern Ethiopia, 2025. (*others = Merchant, gov’t employee, and Day labourer) Variable Category Partners of All partners Women with Podoconiosis(130) Women without Podoconiosis(258 Educational status No formal education 68(52.3) 183(70.9) 251(64.7) Primary school 53(40.7) 71(27.5) 124(31.9) Secondary & above 9(7.0) 4(1.6) 13(3.4) Occupational status Farmer 126(48.8) 247(95.7) 373(96.1) Other 4(3.1) 11(4.3) 15(3.9) Age of intimate partner Below 35 42(32.3) 84(32.6) 126(32.5) Above 35 48(36.9) 104(40.3) 152(39.2) Partner use substance(alcohol, khat, Cigarrate) Yes 29(22.3) 27(10.5) 56(14.4) No 101(77.7) 231(89.5) 332(85.6) Relationship duration Below 7 117(90) 221(85.6) 338(87.1) Above 7 13(10) 37(14.3) 50(12.9) Household characteristics Regarding access to media, 122(93.8%) household with Podoconiosis and 241(93.4%) household without Podoconiosis had no access to media. As regarding, the food security status, 102(78.5%) and 195(75.6%) of the household with Podoconiosis and the household without Podoconiosis respectively were food insecure. Only 12(9.2%) of household with Podoconiosis and, 50(19.3%) of them from household without Podoconiosis were from highest wealth class. Among the participants, 240(61.9%) reported low social support, and only few of the participant, 81(20.9) reported as they had involvement in decision making (Table 3 ). Table 3 Household characteristics of study participants in Boreda district, Gamo zone, Southern Ethiopia, 2025. Variable Category Household characteristics of All women (388) Podoconiosis affected women (130) Podoconiosis unaffected women(258) Access to media Yes 10(7.7) 13(5.1) 23(5.9) No 120() 245(94.9) 365(93.6) Decision making autonomy Yes 38(29.2) 30(11.6) 68(20.9) No 92(70.8) 228(88.4) 320(79.1) Food security status Food secure 28(21.5) 63(24.4) 91(23.4) Food insecure 102(78.5) 195(75.6) 297(76.5) Social support Low 85(65.4) 155(60.1) 240(61.9) Medium 39(30) 92(35.7) 131(33.8) High 6(4.6) 11(4.3) 17(4.4) Wealth index Poorest 24(18.5) 47(18.2) 71(18.3) Poor 31(23.8) 51(19.7) 82(21.1) Medium 30(23.1) 50(19.4) 80(20.6) Rich 33(25.4) 60(23.3) 93(23.9) Richest 12(9.2) 50(19.4) 62(15.9) Comparison of intimate partner violence among women with& without Podoconiosis In this study, the overall prevalence of at least one form of IPV (i.e., either physical, sexual, psychological or controlling) among married women in Boreda district was 248(63.9%) (95% CI: 47.3–72.1). Besides, 59.3%, 51%, 55.7% and 57.2% of the women had experienced physical, sexual, psychological, and controlling IPVs respectively. Whereas, intimate partner violence among women with & without Podoconiosis was found to be 104(80%) (95% CI: 69.2%-82.7%), and 144(55.8%) (95% CI: 48.2%-62.7%) respectively (Fig. 2 ). Factors associated with IPV among married women in Boreda district Overall, among married women (with podoconosis and without podoconosis), in unadjusted logistic model showed that relationship duration, access to media, food security status, involvement in decision making, level of social support and wealth index were significantly associated with IPV at a P value of < 0.25. However, in the multivariable analysis, lack of involvement in decision making, having low social support, women from food insecure household and poor wealth index were significantly associated with IPV at a p-value of < 0.05. The odds of reporting intimate partner violence among women with podoconosis was 3.17 times more likely to be at risk than married women without Podoconiosis (AOR = 3.17, 95%CI (1.93–5.19, P < 0.05)), and reporting intimate partner violence among married women from food insecure household was 1.54 times higher compared to married women from food secure household ((AOR = 1.54, 95%CI (1.36–9.14)). The likelihood of experiencing intimate partner violence among women who had low involvement in decision making was approximately two times higher compared to their counterparts (AOR = 2.18, 95%CI (1.13–4.22)). Married women who had low wealth index were 2.35 times at risk of reporting intimate partner violence than those who have high wealth index (AOR = 2.35, 95% CI ((1.03–4.29)). Having low social support were 3.41 times at risk of reporting intimate partner violence than those who have high social support (AOR = 3.41, 95% CI ((1.20–9.67)) (Table 4 ). Table 4 Factors associated with IPV among married women in Boreda district, Gamo zone, Southern Ethiopia, 2025. Variables Category Intimate partner violence(IPV) COR(95%CI) AOR(95%CI) P-value Yes No Relationship duration Below 7 117 221 1 1 Above 7 13 37 1.51(0.82–2.78) * 1.18(0.13–1.22) Access to media Yes 10 13 1 1 No 238 127 0.41(1.13–6.51) * 2.17(0.55–11.24) 0.005 Food security status Food secured 56 35 1 1 Food insecure 192 105 0.87(0.06–7.24) * 1.54(1.36–9.14) ** Involvement in decision making Yes 49 19 1 1 No 199 121 1.57(0.882–2.789) * 2.18(1.13–4.22)** 0.021 Social support Low social support 159 81 2.21(0.82–5.94) * 3.41(1.20–9.67)** 0.021 Middle social support 81 50 1.82(0.66–5.03) * 2.72(0.93–7.96) High social support 8 9 1 1 Wealth index Poorest 41 30 1.05(0.530–2.098) 1.10(0.54–2.29) Poor 59 23 1.98(0.987–3.968) * 2.35(1.03–4.29) ** 0.042 Middle 48 32 1.16(0.291–2.267) 1.03(0.50–2.13) Rich 65 28 1.79(0.917–3.498) 1.67(0.82–3.44) Richest 35 27 1 1 AOR, adjusted odds ratio; COR, crude odds ratio. * Significant at P value < 0.25 in bivariate analysis. ** Significant at P value < 0.05 in multivariable analysis. Discussion This study assessed the prevalence of IPV among married women and the associated factors, and demonstrates a significant burden of IPV among married women, both (women with podoconosis and women without podoconosis) in Boreda district, Ethiopia. The study found that the overall prevalence of at least one form of IPV among married women in Boreda district was 63.9% (95% CI: 47.3–72.1). Our finding decreased in prevalence than the study conducted in Dadaab refugee Kenya 66.7%(40), Kuwait 71% (41)This could be justified by the differences in the time frame of the studies, the measurement and classification of any IPV. On the contrary, this study is higher than the studies conducted in United States (25%) (42) Uganda married women 56% (43), Systematic review in sub-Sahara Africa 44% (44) systematic review in Ethiopia with overall estimated pooled prevalence of 37% (45). The study conducted in eastern Ethiopia 45.7% (46), Married women in Ethiopia 22.4%(47). the study conducted among reproductive-age women in central Gondar zone 391(48.6%)(47), the study conducted in Southern Ethiopia in 42.19%,(48). And the study conducted in Wolayita Ethiopia 59.7% (49) and studies conducted in Arba Minch Ethiopia 50% (50). A possible explanation for these results may be the differences socio-economic status and differences in research methods, the study participants of our study focus on married women with podoconosis, but other on pregnant women, reproductive age women. The discrepancy might be explained by the differences in the measurement and classification of any IPV. Those women with low level of household decision-making autonomy, were 3.48 times more likely to be at risk than those women who made decisions jointly with their husbands/partners. This finding is similarly to the studies conducted in Nigeria (51). The possible reason could be that household decision-making is seen as a reflection of interpersonal power dynamics within intimate relationships. When women have greater autonomy, it can shift the power balance, reducing the likelihood of violence. The level of social support was a significant predictor of IPV. Women with low social support were 4.14 times more likely to have IPV than women with high social support. The finding was supported by studies done in Northern Tanzania, Southern Ethiopia and Dilla town (48, 52, 53). This can be justified as those who had low social support are less likely to be supported by her family this can lead to negligence and carelessness of her husband end up committing violence. Those who have low social support were mostly low economic status and rural area so there may not have a guarantee that keeps them from violation by husbands or co-habitant. the possible reason could be that women who have strong social support networks it provides a sense of safety, helps individuals cope with abuse, and can offer tangible resources like access to legal aid and support services. Essentially, having a supportive network can buffer against the negative consequences of violence and empower individuals to leave abusive relationships. Those women from food insecure household were 1.54 times more likely to be at risk for IPV than those women from food secured households. This study also found that married women with poor wealth index were about six times more likely to contract IPV than women with high wealth index This finding is similarly to the studies conducted in Nigeria and Mozambique (51, 54), Adama Town Public Health Facility (55) and EDHS report,2016(30). The possible reason could be that women who are economically dependent and who believe in the myth of male superiority are less able to leave abusive partners. This indicated that Poverty and a lack of economic resources can create conditions where violence is more likely to occur. Unemployment, for instance, can trap women in abusive relationships, as they may lack the financial means to leave. The strength of this study are that it included the special population of women who are living with Podoconiosis. Further, the generalizability of these results is good as it is a community based study. One of the limitations of the study was that the nature of the study design could not establish a clear temporal relationship between significantly associated factors and IPV. And also, the data were collected via a structured interviewer-administered questionnaire which may lead to information bias and social desirability bias since intimate partner violence problem is a sensitive issues. Conclusion The present study provides additional evidence with respect to IPV among married women and reports a high prevalence of IPV in Boreda district south Ethiopia. Lack of involvement in decision making, having low social support, women from food insecure household and poor wealth index were significantly associated with intimate partner violence. Measures should be taken to raise community awareness, particularly among intimate partners, their families, and government officials, increased employment and income, can provide women with resources and sharing power that may protect them from IPV. Abbreviations AOR Adjusted odds ratio COR Crude odds ratio CSA Central statistical agency EDHS Ethiopia demographic health survey FAO Food and agriculture organization HEW Health extension worker HIV Human immune virus IPV intimate partner violence LF Lymphatic filariasis SDG Sustainable Development Goal SPSS Statical package for social science UN United Nations WHO World health organization Declarations Ethics approval and consent to participate Ethical clearance was obtained from the Institutional Research Ethical Review committee of Arba Minch University, college of medicine and health science with reference number of IRB/1328/2022. Informed consent from each study participant was obtained after explaining the objective and purpose of the study. Clear information was given about the purpose and procedure of the study, the importance of their participation, the right to withdraw at any time if they want, and about privacy and confidentiality of the information given by each respondent kept properly. All methods were performed following the relevant guidelines and regulations. Consent for publication It is not applicable Availability of data and materials The datasets generated and/or analyzed during the current study are not publicly available due to confidentiality but are available from the corresponding author on reasonable request. Competing interests There is no competing interest Funding This project was funded by Arba Minch University with a budget code of GOV/AMU/TH13/CMHS/SOM/09/13 Authors' contributions EK: Designed data collection, conducted the data analysis and interpretation, developed the first draft and revised subsequent drafts, and wrote the main manuscript text. GA: Designed data collection, conducted the data analysis and interpretation, developed the first draft and revised subsequent drafts, and wrote the main manuscript text. CH, FD: Advised on the conception of the study area, data analysis, and interpretation reviewed and commented on successive drafts. BA: Advised on the conception of the study area, data analysis, and interpretation reviewed and commented on successive drafts. BT: Advised on the data analysis and interpretation and commented on successive drafts. All authors reviewed and approved the final manuscript. Acknowledgment Our special thanks go to acknowledge the financial support provided by Arba Minch University. We would like to acknowledge the data collectors who contributed to this work and the study participants for their willingness. References Sory CI, Cissé K, Millogo T, Dahourou DL, Ouedraogo HG, Kouanda S. 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Journal of interpersonal violence. 2022;37(11-12):NP8632-NP50. Shitu S, Yeshaneh A, Abebe H. Intimate partner violence and associated factors among reproductive age women during COVID-19 pandemic in Southern Ethiopia, 2020. Reproductive health. 2021;18(1):246. Meskele M, Khuzwayo N, Taylor M. Lived experience of intimate partner violence among women using antiretroviral therapy and other outpatient services in Wolaita Zone, Ethiopia: a phenomenological study. Reproductive health. 2021;18(1):25. Andarge E, Shiferaw Y. Disparities in Intimate Partner Violence among Currently Married Women from Food Secure and Insecure Urban Households in South Ethiopia: A Community Based Comparative Cross-Sectional Study. BioMed research international. 2018;2018(1):4738527. Sunmola AM, Sambo MN, Mayungbo OA, Morakinyo LA. Moderating Effect of Husband’s Controlling Attitudes on the Relation Between Women’s Household Decision-Making Autonomy and Intimate Partner Violence Experience in Nigeria. Journal of Interpersonal Violence. 2021;36(21-22):NP12125-NP54. Agenagnew L, Tebeje B, Tilahun R. Disclosure of intimate partner violence and associated factors among victimized women, Ethiopia, 2018: a community-based study. International journal of reproductive medicine. 2020;2020(1):6513246. Sigalla GN, Rasch V, Gammeltoft T, Meyrowitsch DW, Rogathi J, Manongi R, et al. Social support and intimate partner violence during pregnancy among women attending antenatal care in Moshi Municipality, Northern Tanzania. BMC Public Health. 2017;17(1):240. Tadesse A, Helton JJ, Kong V. Intimate Partner Violence and Level of Household Food Scarcity in Mozambique. Journal of Interpersonal Violence. 2024:08862605241307633. Goyomsa GG, Teklehaymanot AN, Arga T, Deribe L. Prevalence of Intimate Partner Violence and Associated Factors among ART user’s Women Attending Adama Town Public Health Facility, Central Ethiopia 2019. 2020. Additional Declarations No competing interests reported. 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07:11:28","extension":"html","order_by":14,"title":"","display":"","copyAsset":false,"role":"acdc-reference","size":112941,"visible":true,"origin":"","legend":"","description":"","filename":"earlyproof.html","url":"https://assets-eu.researchsquare.com/files/rs-7527298/v1/33da0556afc20f74ed245dd3.html"},{"id":92384632,"identity":"1ce45ba8-2db7-4d1d-b3b8-463af3f3fa72","added_by":"auto","created_at":"2025-09-29 06:55:28","extension":"png","order_by":1,"title":"Figure 1","display":"","copyAsset":false,"role":"figure","size":15996,"visible":true,"origin":"","legend":"\u003cp\u003eschematic presentation of sampling procedure to assess intimate partner violence and associated factors among married women with and without podoconosis in Boreda district, Gamo zone, southern Ethiopia, 2025\u003c/p\u003e","description":"","filename":"1.png","url":"https://assets-eu.researchsquare.com/files/rs-7527298/v1/a52e0b9765afc0913206e4d9.png"},{"id":92384631,"identity":"d9ddea48-5b56-4294-b2f0-a8328714f475","added_by":"auto","created_at":"2025-09-29 06:55:28","extension":"png","order_by":2,"title":"Figure 2","display":"","copyAsset":false,"role":"figure","size":14166,"visible":true,"origin":"","legend":"\u003cp\u003ePrevalence of intimate partner violence among married women in Boreda district, Gamo zone, Southern Ethiopia, 2025.\u003c/p\u003e","description":"","filename":"2.png","url":"https://assets-eu.researchsquare.com/files/rs-7527298/v1/56ff2c7d4f12dbd35d60776c.png"},{"id":96605202,"identity":"ba77a18b-eaf3-4b89-bcdd-401d8f543c2a","added_by":"auto","created_at":"2025-11-24 09:21:08","extension":"pdf","order_by":0,"title":"","display":"","copyAsset":false,"role":"manuscript-pdf","size":1060260,"visible":true,"origin":"","legend":"","description":"","filename":"manuscript.pdf","url":"https://assets-eu.researchsquare.com/files/rs-7527298/v1/a7c35bee-99d1-499b-8ea4-0441b1147287.pdf"}],"financialInterests":"No competing interests reported.","formattedTitle":"Intimate partner violence and its associated factors among married women with and without podoconiosis in Boreda district, Gamo zone, southern Ethiopia, 2024: a comparative cross-sectional study","fulltext":[{"header":"Introduction","content":"\u003cp\u003eAccording to WHO, disabled people are disadvantaged particularly in developing countries(\u003cspan citationid=\"CR1\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e1\u003c/span\u003e), Women with disabilities are particularly at risk for severe violence, for sexual assault and disability-related neglect (\u003cspan citationid=\"CR2\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2\u003c/span\u003e, \u003cspan citationid=\"CR3\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e3\u003c/span\u003e). In comparison to their male counterparts, women with disabilities are more likely to live in conditions characterized by poverty and isolation, increasing the likelihood that they experience violence without recourse (\u003cspan citationid=\"CR4\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e4\u003c/span\u003e). Further, compared to non-disabled women, the duration of exposure to violence may be longer among disabled women compared to non-disabled women (\u003cspan citationid=\"CR5\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e5\u003c/span\u003e).\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eIntimate partner violence defined as physical violence, sexual violence, stalking, or psychological aggression (including coercive acts) by a current or former intimate partner, whether or not the partner is a spouse (\u003cspan citationid=\"CR1\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e1\u003c/span\u003e). It is one of the most common forms of violence against women (\u003cspan citationid=\"CR2\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2\u003c/span\u003e). According to the abundant body of literature on IPV among women living with HIV, this is due to the intersection of disease-associated stigma and discrimination (\u003cspan additionalcitationids=\"CR7\" citationid=\"CR6\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e6\u003c/span\u003e\u0026ndash;\u003cspan citationid=\"CR8\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e8\u003c/span\u003e). This is of special importance in the case of Podoconiosis, given that people with Podoconiosis frequently experience stigma in their day to day interactions with family members (\u003cspan citationid=\"CR9\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e9\u003c/span\u003e).\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eDespite the Universal Declaration of the Human Rights, as all people begin to be recognized regardless of age, sex, race, color, language, religion, or any other factors, women have continued to suffer from domestic violence and discrimination in their homes (10). Globally, one in every three women experienced IPV at some point in their life time (11). More women in Africa are subject to lifetime partner violence (45.6%) and sexual assault (11.9%) than women anywhere in the world (12). Systematic reviews done in Ethiopia showed a lifetime prevalence of all types of IPV against women ranging from 20\u0026ndash;78%; physical violence, sexual violence and emotional violence being the most common cause (13). Violence towards women with disabilities is most commonly perpetrated by current or former intimate partners and estimates suggest that 54% of disabled women experience IPV in their lifetime (14). Particular physical injuries in women are recognized indicators of intimate partner violence (15).\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eExperiencing IPV is not only a human rights violation, but also, affect all the domains of women\u0026rsquo;s lives such as self-esteem, productivity, autonomy, capacity to care for themselves and their children, ability to participate in social activities, and even death (16, 17). Furthermore, it has profound health and social consequences for women (18). Sexually and physically abused women by intimate partners have a risk of 50 to 70% to be affected by gynecological, central nervous system, and stress related problems (19, 20).\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eIn Ethiopia, violence against women is widely acknowledged to be of great concern, not just from a human rights perspective, but also from an economic and health viewpoint (21). And Ethiopia agreed on UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), including Target 5.2: Eliminate all forms of violence against all women and girls in public and private spheres (22).\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eHowever, in endemic areas of neglected disabilities such as Podoconiosis women\u0026rsquo;s are victims of various, overlapping forms of IPV that negatively impact their health and wellbeing (23). A qualitative study in northern Ethiopia explores the relationship between IPV and Podoconiosis showed that Podoconiosis increases the frequency and severity of IPV (23). However, in Boreda district southern region, Podoconiosis is highly endemic with female to male ratio of 3.2:1(24). In spite of this, there had never been a study on IPV in the area. This is important both for improving diseases outcomes and for diminishing IPV prevalence in the area. With this purpose, this study aimed to assess the prevalence of intimate partner violence and associated factors among married women with and without Podoconiosis in Boreda district, Gamo zone, southern Ethiopia, 2024 comparative cross sectional study.\u003c/p\u003e"},{"header":"Methods and Materials","content":"\u003cdiv id=\"Sec3\" class=\"Section2\"\u003e\u003ch2\u003eStudy design and Study setting\u003c/h2\u003e\u003cp\u003eA community based comparative cross-sectional study design was conducted in Boreda district, Gamo zone, Southern Ethiopia. Boreda is one of the districts in Gamo zone with high number of lymphedema case. It is bordered on the Southeast by Mirab Abaya, on the Southwest by Chencha, on the west by Kucha, and on the North by the Wolayita Zone. There is about 1084 lymphedema cases reported in the study area (25). The district has 29 kebeles (an aggregate of villages and the smallest administrative unit in Ethiopia). Of the total kebele, 10 were endemic for Podoconiosis. The proportion of Podoconiosis among females was 76.2% with female to male ratio of (3.2:1) (26).\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\n\u003ch3\u003eStudy Population\u003c/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThere were two groups comprising a) married women who were living with Podoconiosis, b) women without Podoconiosis. All married women who have intimate partner in Boreda district were included. Mentally ill women or having any other severe illness which hindered the client from being interviewed were excluded.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003ch3\u003eSample size and sampling procedure\u003c/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe sample size for this study was determined using a formula for estimation of two population proportion using Epi info software version 7 with the assumptions of 95% confidence level, 80% power, percent of IPV among unexposed( those with low wealth index) 23.5%, percent of IPV among exposed(those with high wealth index 38.6%(27), the ratio of unexposed to exposed women (r\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;2),. The sample size calculated using these assumptions was 353. With consideration of a nonresponse rate of 10%, a total sample of 388(130:258) women was included in the study. Randomly selected endemic kebele in the district was included for data collection. Then, number of married women with podoconiosis cases in each kebele was identified by health extension workers. The sample size was allocated proportionally to the size of cases in the selected kebeles (Fig.\u0026nbsp;1). Finally, the study subjects were selected by using simple random sampling technique and after selected cases interviewed, the two nearest (in distance) unaffected women was selected and interviewed. In a situation when a household has two or more eligible subjects, only one was selected by lottery method.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003ch3\u003eStudy variable\u003c/h3\u003e\n\u003cdiv id=\"Sec7\" class=\"Section2\"\u003e\u003ch2\u003eDependent variable\u003c/h2\u003e\u003cp\u003eIntimate partner violence (present/absent)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\u003cdiv id=\"Sec8\" class=\"Section2\"\u003e\u003ch2\u003eIndependent variable\u003c/h2\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eWomen characteristics\u003c/strong\u003e\u003cp\u003eage, religion, residence, educational status, occupational status, family size, age at first marriage, fertility desire\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003ePartner characteristics\u003c/strong\u003e\u003cp\u003eAge, Occupation, substance use, educational status, relationship duration\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eHousehold characteristics\u003c/strong\u003e\u003cp\u003eWealth index, Access to media, household food security, Social support, decision-making power\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\n\u003ch3\u003eData collection methods\u003c/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eA questionnaire was adapted from a study done in Ethiopia to assess the reliability of the tools for the assessment of domestic violence against women in a low-income country settings (28\u0026ndash;30).\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThe structured questionnaire was adapted from the WHO\u0026rsquo;s multi-country study on women\u0026rsquo;s health and domestic violence (19). The structured questionnaires were prepared first in English and then translated to the local language (Gamogna). The wording of the questionnaires was adapted to be clear and unambiguous. In order to maintain consistency in the translation with the English version, the questionnaire was back-translated into English by another language expert. The contents of the questionnaire included socio-demographic variables of women and their partner, household characteristics. Respondents was categorized as having experienced IPV if they reported experiencing at least one act of IPV. Social support was assessed through face-to-face interview using pretested and standardized tools (Oslo Scale) (31). To assess for the household food insecurity, the food insecurity experience scale developed by FAO (32) was used. Which is validated for use in different social contexts (33, 34). HEWs was recruited for data collection and they was supervised by four MSc holder health workers. The principal investigators overseen the whole activity and coordinate the process.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003ch3\u003eMeasurement and operational definition\u003c/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eIntimate Partner Violence (IPV)\u003c/strong\u003e\u003cp\u003eIf the respondent says \u0026ldquo;yes\u0026rdquo; to any one of the ranges of sexually, emotionally, physically and controlling behaviour or any combination of these coercive acts used against married women, within the last year, it is considered intimate partner violence(35, 36).\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003ePodoconiosis\u003c/strong\u003e\u003cp\u003ein this study podoconiosis defined as podoconiosis of lower leg present for more than 1 year in a resident of podoconiosis endemic area, for which other causes- e.g. onchocerciasis, leprosy, Milroy syndrome, heart and liver failures have been excluded (37).\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eWomen\u0026rsquo;s decision-making autonomy\u003c/strong\u003e\u003cp\u003eThis is one of the key indicators that measure the level of women\u0026rsquo;s involvement in household decision-making regarding her own health care, major household purchases and visits to her family or relatives (38).\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eFood secure\u003c/strong\u003e\u003cp\u003ewhen a household experiences none of the food insecurity conditions (those who answer \u0026ldquo;no\u0026rdquo; to all the questions about food insecurity-related experiences) (32).\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eFood insecure\u003c/strong\u003e\u003cp\u003ea household experiences at least one of the food insecurity conditions, mild to severe (those who answer \u0026ldquo;yes\u0026rdquo; to at least one of the food insecurity-related experiences) (32).\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eSocial support\u003c/strong\u003e\u003cp\u003eSupport at time when difficulties and critical conditions like financial, social, and psychological, assessed by Oslo-3 social support scales which has total scores of 14 and classified into three broad categories. According to this respondents who score 3\u0026ndash;8 was an indication of as having poor social support, those who will score 9\u0026ndash;11 was an indication of as having moderate social support and those who score 12\u0026ndash;14 was indication of as having strong social support(39).\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\u003cdiv id=\"Sec11\" class=\"Section2\"\u003e\u003ch2\u003eData processing and analysis\u003c/h2\u003e\u003cp\u003eThe collected data was cleaned and edited, then analyzed by using SPSS version 25. Descriptive statistics using frequencies, percentages, mean, and standard deviations was used to describe findings. Bivariate analysis using logistic regression was done for the variables that fulfill the assumptions and all explanatory variables that have association with the outcome variable at p-value of less than 0.25 was selected as candidates for multivariable analysis. Finally, those variables with p-\u0026lt;0.05 were considered as statistically significant. Model fitness was checked using Hosmer and Lemeshow goodness of fitness test and it was statically non-significant (0.81). Therefore, we concluded that the model fits. Multicollinearity was investigated using VIF, and showed no Multicollinearity as none of the variables\u0026rsquo; VIF was more than or equal to ten.\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/div\u003e"},{"header":"Results","content":"\u003cdiv id=\"Sec13\" class=\"Section2\"\u003e\u003ch2\u003eSociodemographic characteristics of study participant\u003c/h2\u003e\u003cp\u003eA total of 388 participants fully responded to the questionnaires, yielding a response rate of 100%. The mean age of respondents was 47.57 years (SD\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;0.26). Most of the women were without podoconosis 258(66.5%). Approximately 366(94.3%) participants had no formal education, followed by 15(3.87%) who attended primary school. Approximately 261 (67.3%) were protestant, 88 (22.6%) were orthodox, regarding the family size, most 311(80.2%) had more than five family size, and all of the participants had rural residence (Table\u0026nbsp;\u003cspan refid=\"Tab1\" class=\"InternalRef\"\u003e1\u003c/span\u003e).\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cdiv class=\"gridtable\"\u003e\u003ctable float=\"Yes\" id=\"Tab1\" border=\"1\"\u003e\u003ccaption language=\"En\"\u003e\u003cdiv class=\"CaptionNumber\"\u003eTable 1\u003c/div\u003e\u003cdiv class=\"CaptionContent\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eSocio demographic characteristics of participants in Boreda district, Gamo zone, Southern Ethiopia, 2025. (*others\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;Merchant and Day labourer)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\u003c/caption\u003e\u003ccolgroup cols=\"5\"\u003e\u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c1\" colnum=\"1\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c2\" colnum=\"2\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c3\" colnum=\"3\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c4\" colnum=\"4\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c5\" colnum=\"5\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\u003ctbody\u003e\u003ctr\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\" morerows=\"1\" rowspan=\"2\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eVariable\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\" morerows=\"1\" rowspan=\"2\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eCategory\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colspan=\"2\" nameend=\"c4\" namest=\"c3\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eWomen\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\" morerows=\"1\" rowspan=\"2\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eAll women (n\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;388)\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eFrequency (%)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003c/tr\u003e\u003ctr\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e\u003cp\u003ePodoconiosis affected (n\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;130)\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eFrequency (%)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e\u003cp\u003ePodoconiosis unaffected (n\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;258)\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eFrequency (%)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003c/tr\u003e\u003ctr\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\" morerows=\"2\" rowspan=\"3\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eAge\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e31\u0026ndash;40\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e33(25.4)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e78(30.2)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e111(28.6)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003c/tr\u003e\u003ctr\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e41\u0026ndash;50\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e40(30.8)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e124(95.4)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e164(42.3)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003c/tr\u003e\u003ctr\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eAbove 50\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e57(43.8)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e56(21.7)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e113(29.1)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003c/tr\u003e\u003ctr\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\" morerows=\"2\" rowspan=\"3\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eReligion\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eOrthodox\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e41(31.5)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e47(18.2)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e88(22.6)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003c/tr\u003e\u003ctr\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eProtestant\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e78(60)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e183(70.9)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e261(67.3)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003c/tr\u003e\u003ctr\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eAdventist\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e11(8.5)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e28(10.8)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e39(10.1)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003c/tr\u003e\u003ctr\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\" morerows=\"2\" rowspan=\"3\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eEducational status\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eNo formal education\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e124(95.4)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e242(93.7)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e366(94.3)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003c/tr\u003e\u003ctr\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e\u003cp\u003ePrimary\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e6(4.6)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e9(3.5)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e15(3.87)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003c/tr\u003e\u003ctr\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e\u003cp\u003esecondary \u0026amp; above\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e-\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e7(2.7)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e7(1.8)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003c/tr\u003e\u003ctr\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\" morerows=\"1\" rowspan=\"2\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eOccupational status\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eHousewife\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e124(95.4)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e249(96.5)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e373(96.1)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003c/tr\u003e\u003ctr\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eOther\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e6(4.6)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e69(26.7)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e75(19.3)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003c/tr\u003e\u003ctr\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\" morerows=\"1\" rowspan=\"2\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eFamily size\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u0026lt;\u0026thinsp;5\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e29(22.3)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e28(10.8)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e57(14.6)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003c/tr\u003e\u003ctr\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u0026gt;= 5\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e89(68.5)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e222(86.2)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e311(80.2)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003c/tr\u003e\u003ctr\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\" morerows=\"2\" rowspan=\"3\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eFertility desire in the future\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eNo need\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e118(90.7)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e240(93.0)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e358(92.3)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003c/tr\u003e\u003ctr\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e1\u0026ndash;2\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e9(6.9)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e12(4.7)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e21(5.4)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003c/tr\u003e\u003ctr\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e3\u0026ndash;4\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e3(2.3)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e6(2.3)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e9(2.3)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003c/tr\u003e\u003ctr\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\" morerows=\"1\" rowspan=\"2\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eAge at first marriage\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u0026lt;\u0026thinsp;18\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e89(68.5)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e166(64.3)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e255(65.7)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003c/tr\u003e\u003ctr\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u0026gt;=18\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e41(31.5)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e92(35.7)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e133(34.3)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003c/tr\u003e\u003c/tbody\u003e\u003c/colgroup\u003e\u003c/table\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\u003cdiv id=\"Sec14\" class=\"Section2\"\u003e\u003ch2\u003ePartner characteristics\u003c/h2\u003e\u003cp\u003eMost of partners 104(26.8%) had age of above 35 years. Most of 373(96.1%) partners are farmer. Approximately 251(64.7%) participants had no formal education, followed by 124(31.9%) who attended primary school. And only 56(14.4) had a history of substance use (Table\u0026nbsp;\u003cspan refid=\"Tab2\" class=\"InternalRef\"\u003e2\u003c/span\u003e).\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cdiv class=\"gridtable\"\u003e\u003ctable float=\"Yes\" id=\"Tab2\" border=\"1\"\u003e\u003ccaption language=\"En\"\u003e\u003cdiv class=\"CaptionNumber\"\u003eTable 2\u003c/div\u003e\u003cdiv class=\"CaptionContent\"\u003e\u003cp\u003epartners characteristics of the study participants in Boreda district, Gamo zone, Southern Ethiopia, 2025. (*others\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;Merchant, gov\u0026rsquo;t employee, and Day labourer)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\u003c/caption\u003e\u003ccolgroup cols=\"5\"\u003e\u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c1\" colnum=\"1\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c2\" colnum=\"2\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c3\" colnum=\"3\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c4\" colnum=\"4\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c5\" colnum=\"5\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\u003ctbody\u003e\u003ctr\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\" morerows=\"1\" rowspan=\"2\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eVariable\u003c/em\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\" morerows=\"1\" rowspan=\"2\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eCategory\u003c/em\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colspan=\"2\" nameend=\"c4\" namest=\"c3\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003ePartners of\u003c/em\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\" morerows=\"1\" rowspan=\"2\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eAll partners\u003c/em\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003c/tr\u003e\u003ctr\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eWomen with Podoconiosis(130)\u003c/em\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eWomen without Podoconiosis(258\u003c/em\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003c/tr\u003e\u003ctr\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\" morerows=\"2\" rowspan=\"3\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eEducational status\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eNo formal education\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e68(52.3)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e183(70.9)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e251(64.7)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003c/tr\u003e\u003ctr\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e\u003cp\u003ePrimary school\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e53(40.7)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e71(27.5)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e124(31.9)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003c/tr\u003e\u003ctr\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eSecondary \u0026amp; above\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e9(7.0)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e4(1.6)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e13(3.4)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003c/tr\u003e\u003ctr\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\" morerows=\"1\" rowspan=\"2\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eOccupational status\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eFarmer\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e126(48.8)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e247(95.7)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e373(96.1)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003c/tr\u003e\u003ctr\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eOther\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e4(3.1)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e11(4.3)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e15(3.9)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003c/tr\u003e\u003ctr\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\" morerows=\"1\" rowspan=\"2\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eAge of intimate partner\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eBelow 35\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e42(32.3)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e84(32.6)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e126(32.5)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003c/tr\u003e\u003ctr\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eAbove 35\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e48(36.9)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e104(40.3)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e152(39.2)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003c/tr\u003e\u003ctr\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\" morerows=\"1\" rowspan=\"2\"\u003e\u003cp\u003ePartner use substance(alcohol, khat, Cigarrate)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eYes\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e29(22.3)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e27(10.5)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e56(14.4)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003c/tr\u003e\u003ctr\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eNo\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e101(77.7)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e231(89.5)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e332(85.6)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003c/tr\u003e\u003ctr\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\" morerows=\"1\" rowspan=\"2\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eRelationship duration\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eBelow 7\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e117(90)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e221(85.6)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e338(87.1)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003c/tr\u003e\u003ctr\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eAbove 7\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e13(10)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e37(14.3)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e50(12.9)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003c/tr\u003e\u003c/tbody\u003e\u003c/colgroup\u003e\u003c/table\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\u003cdiv id=\"Sec15\" class=\"Section2\"\u003e\u003ch2\u003eHousehold characteristics\u003c/h2\u003e\u003cp\u003eRegarding access to media, 122(93.8%) household with Podoconiosis and 241(93.4%) household without Podoconiosis had no access to media. As regarding, the food security status, 102(78.5%) and 195(75.6%) of the household with Podoconiosis and the household without Podoconiosis respectively were food insecure. Only 12(9.2%) of household with Podoconiosis and, 50(19.3%) of them from household without Podoconiosis were from highest wealth class. Among the participants, 240(61.9%) reported low social support, and only few of the participant, 81(20.9) reported as they had involvement in decision making (Table\u0026nbsp;\u003cspan refid=\"Tab3\" class=\"InternalRef\"\u003e3\u003c/span\u003e).\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cdiv class=\"gridtable\"\u003e\u003ctable float=\"Yes\" id=\"Tab3\" border=\"1\"\u003e\u003ccaption language=\"En\"\u003e\u003cdiv class=\"CaptionNumber\"\u003eTable 3\u003c/div\u003e\u003cdiv class=\"CaptionContent\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eHousehold characteristics of study participants in Boreda district, Gamo zone, Southern Ethiopia, 2025.\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\u003c/caption\u003e\u003ccolgroup cols=\"5\"\u003e\u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c1\" colnum=\"1\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c2\" colnum=\"2\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c3\" colnum=\"3\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c4\" colnum=\"4\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c5\" colnum=\"5\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\u003ctbody\u003e\u003ctr\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\" morerows=\"1\" rowspan=\"2\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eVariable\u003c/em\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\" morerows=\"1\" rowspan=\"2\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eCategory\u003c/em\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colspan=\"2\" nameend=\"c4\" namest=\"c3\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eHousehold characteristics of\u003c/em\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\" morerows=\"1\" rowspan=\"2\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eAll women (388)\u003c/em\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003c/tr\u003e\u003ctr\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003ePodoconiosis affected women (130)\u003c/em\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003ePodoconiosis unaffected women(258)\u003c/em\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003c/tr\u003e\u003ctr\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\" morerows=\"1\" rowspan=\"2\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eAccess to media\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eYes\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e10(7.7)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e13(5.1)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e23(5.9)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003c/tr\u003e\u003ctr\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eNo\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e120()\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e245(94.9)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e365(93.6)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003c/tr\u003e\u003ctr\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\" morerows=\"1\" rowspan=\"2\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eDecision making autonomy\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eYes\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e38(29.2)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e30(11.6)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e68(20.9)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003c/tr\u003e\u003ctr\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eNo\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e92(70.8)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e228(88.4)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e320(79.1)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003c/tr\u003e\u003ctr\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\" morerows=\"1\" rowspan=\"2\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eFood security status\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eFood secure\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e28(21.5)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e63(24.4)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e91(23.4)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003c/tr\u003e\u003ctr\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eFood insecure\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e102(78.5)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e195(75.6)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e297(76.5)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003c/tr\u003e\u003ctr\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\" morerows=\"2\" rowspan=\"3\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eSocial support\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eLow\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e85(65.4)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e155(60.1)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e240(61.9)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003c/tr\u003e\u003ctr\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eMedium\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e39(30)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e92(35.7)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e131(33.8)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003c/tr\u003e\u003ctr\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eHigh\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e6(4.6)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e11(4.3)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e17(4.4)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003c/tr\u003e\u003ctr\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\" morerows=\"4\" rowspan=\"5\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eWealth index\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e\u003cp\u003ePoorest\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e24(18.5)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e47(18.2)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e71(18.3)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003c/tr\u003e\u003ctr\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e\u003cp\u003ePoor\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e31(23.8)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e51(19.7)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e82(21.1)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003c/tr\u003e\u003ctr\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eMedium\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e30(23.1)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e50(19.4)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e80(20.6)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003c/tr\u003e\u003ctr\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eRich\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e33(25.4)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e60(23.3)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e93(23.9)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003c/tr\u003e\u003ctr\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eRichest\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e12(9.2)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e50(19.4)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e62(15.9)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003c/tr\u003e\u003c/tbody\u003e\u003c/colgroup\u003e\u003c/table\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\u003cdiv id=\"Sec16\" class=\"Section2\"\u003e\u003ch2\u003eComparison of intimate partner violence among women with\u0026amp; without Podoconiosis\u003c/h2\u003e\u003cp\u003eIn this study, the overall prevalence of at least one form of IPV (i.e., either physical, sexual, psychological or controlling) among married women in Boreda district was 248(63.9%) (95% CI: 47.3\u0026ndash;72.1). Besides, 59.3%, 51%, 55.7% and 57.2% of the women had experienced physical, sexual, psychological, and controlling IPVs respectively. Whereas, intimate partner violence among women with \u0026amp; without Podoconiosis was found to be 104(80%) (95% CI: 69.2%-82.7%), and 144(55.8%) (95% CI: 48.2%-62.7%) respectively (Fig.\u0026nbsp;\u003cspan refid=\"Fig1\" class=\"InternalRef\"\u003e2\u003c/span\u003e).\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\u003cdiv id=\"Sec17\" class=\"Section2\"\u003e\u003ch2\u003eFactors associated with IPV among married women in Boreda district\u003c/h2\u003e\u003cp\u003eOverall, among married women (with podoconosis and without podoconosis), in unadjusted logistic model showed that relationship duration, access to media, food security status, involvement in decision making, level of social support and wealth index were significantly associated with IPV at a P value of \u0026lt;\u0026thinsp;0.25. However, in the multivariable analysis, lack of involvement in decision making, having low social support, women from food insecure household and poor wealth index were significantly associated with IPV at a p-value of \u0026lt;\u0026thinsp;0.05.\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThe odds of reporting intimate partner violence among women with podoconosis was 3.17 times more likely to be at risk than married women without Podoconiosis (AOR\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;3.17, 95%CI (1.93\u0026ndash;5.19, P\u0026thinsp;\u0026lt;\u0026thinsp;0.05)), and reporting intimate partner violence among married women from food insecure household was 1.54 times higher compared to married women from food secure household ((AOR\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;1.54, 95%CI (1.36\u0026ndash;9.14)). The likelihood of experiencing intimate partner violence among women who had low involvement in decision making was approximately two times higher compared to their counterparts (AOR\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;2.18, 95%CI (1.13\u0026ndash;4.22)). Married women who had low wealth index were 2.35 times at risk of reporting intimate partner violence than those who have high wealth index (AOR\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;2.35, 95% CI ((1.03\u0026ndash;4.29)). Having low social support were 3.41 times at risk of reporting intimate partner violence than those who have high social support (AOR\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;3.41, 95% CI ((1.20\u0026ndash;9.67)) (Table\u0026nbsp;\u003cspan refid=\"Tab4\" class=\"InternalRef\"\u003e4\u003c/span\u003e).\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cdiv class=\"gridtable\"\u003e\u003ctable float=\"Yes\" id=\"Tab4\" border=\"1\"\u003e\u003ccaption language=\"En\"\u003e\u003cdiv class=\"CaptionNumber\"\u003eTable 4\u003c/div\u003e\u003cdiv class=\"CaptionContent\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eFactors associated with IPV among married women in Boreda district, Gamo zone, Southern Ethiopia, 2025.\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\u003c/caption\u003e\u003ccolgroup cols=\"7\"\u003e\u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c1\" colnum=\"1\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c2\" colnum=\"2\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c3\" colnum=\"3\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c4\" colnum=\"4\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c5\" colnum=\"5\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c6\" colnum=\"6\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c7\" colnum=\"7\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\u003ctbody\u003e\u003ctr\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\" morerows=\"1\" rowspan=\"2\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eVariables\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\" morerows=\"1\" rowspan=\"2\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eCategory\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colspan=\"2\" nameend=\"c4\" namest=\"c3\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eIntimate partner violence(IPV)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\" morerows=\"1\" rowspan=\"2\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eCOR(95%CI)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\" morerows=\"1\" rowspan=\"2\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eAOR(95%CI)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\" morerows=\"1\" rowspan=\"2\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eP-value\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003c/tr\u003e\u003ctr\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eYes\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eNo\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003c/tr\u003e\u003ctr\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\" morerows=\"1\" rowspan=\"2\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eRelationship duration\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eBelow 7\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e117\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e221\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e1\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e1\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e\u003c/tr\u003e\u003ctr\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eAbove 7\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e13\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e37\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e1.51(0.82\u0026ndash;2.78) *\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e1.18(0.13\u0026ndash;1.22)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e\u003c/tr\u003e\u003ctr\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\" morerows=\"1\" rowspan=\"2\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eAccess to media\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eYes\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e10\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e13\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e1\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e1\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e\u003c/tr\u003e\u003ctr\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eNo\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e238\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e127\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e0.41(1.13\u0026ndash;6.51) *\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e2.17(0.55\u0026ndash;11.24)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e0.005\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003c/tr\u003e\u003ctr\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\" morerows=\"1\" rowspan=\"2\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eFood security status\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eFood secured\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e56\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e35\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e1\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e1\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e\u003c/tr\u003e\u003ctr\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eFood insecure\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e192\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e105\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e0.87(0.06\u0026ndash;7.24) *\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e1.54(1.36\u0026ndash;9.14) **\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e\u003c/tr\u003e\u003ctr\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\" morerows=\"1\" rowspan=\"2\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eInvolvement in decision making\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eYes\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e49\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e19\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e1\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e1\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e\u003c/tr\u003e\u003ctr\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eNo\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e199\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e121\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e1.57(0.882\u0026ndash;2.789) *\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e2.18(1.13\u0026ndash;4.22)**\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e0.021\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003c/tr\u003e\u003ctr\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\" morerows=\"2\" rowspan=\"3\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eSocial support\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eLow social support\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e159\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e81\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e2.21(0.82\u0026ndash;5.94) *\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e3.41(1.20\u0026ndash;9.67)**\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e0.021\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003c/tr\u003e\u003ctr\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eMiddle social support\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e81\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e50\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e1.82(0.66\u0026ndash;5.03) *\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e2.72(0.93\u0026ndash;7.96)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e\u003c/tr\u003e\u003ctr\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eHigh social support\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e8\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e9\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e1\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e1\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e\u003c/tr\u003e\u003ctr\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\" morerows=\"4\" rowspan=\"5\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eWealth index\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e\u003cp\u003ePoorest\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e41\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e30\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e1.05(0.530\u0026ndash;2.098)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e1.10(0.54\u0026ndash;2.29)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e\u003c/tr\u003e\u003ctr\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e\u003cp\u003ePoor\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e59\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e23\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e1.98(0.987\u0026ndash;3.968) *\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e2.35(1.03\u0026ndash;4.29) **\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e0.042\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003c/tr\u003e\u003ctr\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eMiddle\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e48\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e32\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e1.16(0.291\u0026ndash;2.267)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e1.03(0.50\u0026ndash;2.13)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e\u003c/tr\u003e\u003ctr\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eRich\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e65\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e28\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e1.79(0.917\u0026ndash;3.498)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e1.67(0.82\u0026ndash;3.44)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e\u003c/tr\u003e\u003ctr\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eRichest\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e35\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e27\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e1\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e1\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e\u003c/tr\u003e\u003c/tbody\u003e\u003c/colgroup\u003e\u003c/table\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eAOR, adjusted odds ratio; COR, crude odds ratio. \u003csup\u003e*\u003c/sup\u003eSignificant at \u003cem\u003eP\u003c/em\u003e value\u0026thinsp;\u0026lt;\u0026thinsp;0.25 in bivariate analysis. \u003csup\u003e**\u003c/sup\u003eSignificant at \u003cem\u003eP\u003c/em\u003e value\u0026thinsp;\u0026lt;\u0026thinsp;0.05 in multivariable analysis.\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/div\u003e"},{"header":"Discussion","content":"\u003cp\u003eThis study assessed the prevalence of IPV among married women and the associated factors, and demonstrates a significant burden of IPV among married women, both (women with podoconosis and women without podoconosis) in Boreda district, Ethiopia.\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThe study found that the overall prevalence of at least one form of IPV among married women in Boreda district was 63.9% (95% CI: 47.3\u0026ndash;72.1). Our finding decreased in prevalence than the study conducted in Dadaab refugee Kenya 66.7%(40), Kuwait 71% (41)This could be justified by the differences in the time frame of the studies, the measurement and classification of any IPV.\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eOn the contrary, this study is higher than the studies conducted in United States (25%) (42) Uganda married women 56% (43), Systematic review in sub-Sahara Africa 44% (44) systematic review in Ethiopia with overall estimated pooled prevalence of 37% (45). The study conducted in eastern Ethiopia 45.7% (46), Married women in Ethiopia 22.4%(47). the study conducted among reproductive-age women in central Gondar zone 391(48.6%)(47), the study conducted in Southern Ethiopia in 42.19%,(48). And the study conducted in Wolayita Ethiopia 59.7% (49) and studies conducted in Arba Minch Ethiopia 50% (50). A possible explanation for these results may be the differences socio-economic status and differences in research methods, the study participants of our study focus on married women with podoconosis, but other on pregnant women, reproductive age women. The discrepancy might be explained by the differences in the measurement and classification of any IPV.\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThose women with low level of household decision-making autonomy, were 3.48 times more likely to be at risk than those women who made decisions jointly with their husbands/partners. This finding is similarly to the studies conducted in Nigeria (51). The possible reason could be that household decision-making is seen as a reflection of interpersonal power dynamics within intimate relationships. When women have greater autonomy, it can shift the power balance, reducing the likelihood of violence.\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThe level of social support was a significant predictor of IPV. Women with low social support were 4.14 times more likely to have IPV than women with high social support. The finding was supported by studies done in Northern Tanzania, Southern Ethiopia and Dilla town (48, 52, 53). This can be justified as those who had low social support are less likely to be supported by her family this can lead to negligence and carelessness of her husband end up committing violence. Those who have low social support were mostly low economic status and rural area so there may not have a guarantee that keeps them from violation by husbands or co-habitant. the possible reason could be that women who have strong social support networks it provides a sense of safety, helps individuals cope with abuse, and can offer tangible resources like access to legal aid and support services. Essentially, having a supportive network can buffer against the negative consequences of violence and empower individuals to leave abusive relationships.\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThose women from food insecure household were 1.54 times more likely to be at risk for IPV than those women from food secured households. This study also found that married women with poor wealth index were about six times more likely to contract IPV than women with high wealth index This finding is similarly to the studies conducted in Nigeria and Mozambique (51, 54), Adama Town Public Health Facility (55) and EDHS report,2016(30). The possible reason could be that women who are economically dependent and who believe in the myth of male superiority are less able to leave abusive partners. This indicated that Poverty and a lack of economic resources can create conditions where violence is more likely to occur. Unemployment, for instance, can trap women in abusive relationships, as they may lack the financial means to leave.\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThe strength of this study are that it included the special population of women who are living with Podoconiosis. Further, the generalizability of these results is good as it is a community based study. One of the limitations of the study was that the nature of the study design could not establish a clear temporal relationship between significantly associated factors and IPV. And also, the data were collected via a structured interviewer-administered questionnaire which may lead to information bias and social desirability bias since intimate partner violence problem is a sensitive issues.\u003c/p\u003e"},{"header":"Conclusion","content":"\u003cp\u003eThe present study provides additional evidence with respect to IPV among married women and reports a high prevalence of IPV in Boreda district south Ethiopia. Lack of involvement in decision making, having low social support, women from food insecure household and poor wealth index were significantly associated with intimate partner violence. Measures should be taken to raise community awareness, particularly among intimate partners, their families, and government officials, increased employment and income, can provide women with resources and sharing power that may protect them from IPV.\u003c/p\u003e"},{"header":"Abbreviations","content":"\u003cdiv class=\"DefinitionList\"\u003e\u003cdiv class=\"DefinitionListEntry\"\u003e\u003cdiv class=\"Term\"\u003e\u003cb\u003eAOR\u003c/b\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\u003cdiv class=\"Description\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eAdjusted odds ratio\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\u003cdiv class=\"DefinitionListEntry\"\u003e\u003cdiv class=\"Term\"\u003e\u003cb\u003eCOR\u003c/b\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\u003cdiv class=\"Description\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eCrude odds ratio\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\u003cdiv class=\"DefinitionListEntry\"\u003e\u003cdiv class=\"Term\"\u003e\u003cb\u003eCSA\u003c/b\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\u003cdiv class=\"Description\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eCentral statistical agency\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\u003cdiv class=\"DefinitionListEntry\"\u003e\u003cdiv class=\"Term\"\u003e\u003cb\u003eEDHS\u003c/b\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\u003cdiv class=\"Description\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eEthiopia demographic health survey\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\u003cdiv class=\"DefinitionListEntry\"\u003e\u003cdiv class=\"Term\"\u003e\u003cb\u003eFAO\u003c/b\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\u003cdiv class=\"Description\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eFood and agriculture organization\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\u003cdiv class=\"DefinitionListEntry\"\u003e\u003cdiv class=\"Term\"\u003e\u003cb\u003eHEW\u003c/b\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\u003cdiv class=\"Description\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eHealth extension worker\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\u003cdiv class=\"DefinitionListEntry\"\u003e\u003cdiv class=\"Term\"\u003e\u003cb\u003eHIV\u003c/b\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\u003cdiv class=\"Description\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eHuman immune virus\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\u003cdiv class=\"DefinitionListEntry\"\u003e\u003cdiv class=\"Term\"\u003e\u003cb\u003eIPV\u003c/b\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\u003cdiv class=\"Description\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eintimate partner violence\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\u003cdiv class=\"DefinitionListEntry\"\u003e\u003cdiv class=\"Term\"\u003e\u003cb\u003eLF\u003c/b\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\u003cdiv class=\"Description\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eLymphatic filariasis\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\u003cdiv class=\"DefinitionListEntry\"\u003e\u003cdiv class=\"Term\"\u003e\u003cb\u003eSDG\u003c/b\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\u003cdiv class=\"Description\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eSustainable Development Goal\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\u003cdiv class=\"DefinitionListEntry\"\u003e\u003cdiv class=\"Term\"\u003e\u003cb\u003eSPSS\u003c/b\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\u003cdiv class=\"Description\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eStatical package for social science\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\u003cdiv class=\"DefinitionListEntry\"\u003e\u003cdiv class=\"Term\"\u003e\u003cb\u003eUN\u003c/b\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\u003cdiv class=\"Description\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eUnited Nations\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\u003cdiv class=\"DefinitionListEntry\"\u003e\u003cdiv class=\"Term\"\u003e\u003cb\u003eWHO\u003c/b\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\u003cdiv class=\"Description\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eWorld health organization\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\u003c/div\u003e"},{"header":"Declarations","content":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eEthics approval and consent to participate\u003c/strong\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eEthical clearance was obtained from the Institutional Research Ethical Review committee of Arba Minch University, college of medicine and health science with reference number of IRB/1328/2022. Informed consent from each study participant was obtained after explaining the objective and purpose of the study. Clear information was given about the purpose and procedure of the study, the importance of their participation, the right to withdraw at any time if they want, and about privacy and confidentiality of the information given by each respondent kept properly. All methods were performed following the relevant guidelines and regulations.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eConsent for publication\u003c/strong\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eIt is not applicable\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eAvailability of data and materials\u003c/strong\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe datasets generated and/or analyzed during the current study are not publicly available due to confidentiality but are available from the corresponding author on reasonable request.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\u003cspan id=\"_Toc105399276\"\u003eCompeting interests\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/strong\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThere is no competing interest\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eFunding\u0026nbsp;\u003c/strong\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThis project was funded by Arba Minch University with a budget code of GOV/AMU/TH13/CMHS/SOM/09/13\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp id=\"_Toc105399278\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eAuthors\u0026apos; contributions\u003c/strong\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eEK: Designed data collection, conducted the data analysis and interpretation, developed the first draft and revised subsequent drafts, and wrote the main manuscript text. GA: Designed data collection, conducted the data analysis and interpretation, developed the first draft and revised subsequent drafts, and wrote the main manuscript text. CH, FD: Advised on the conception of the study area, data analysis, and interpretation reviewed and commented on successive drafts. BA: Advised on the conception of the study area, data analysis, and interpretation reviewed and commented on successive drafts. BT: Advised on the data analysis and interpretation and commented on successive drafts. All authors reviewed and approved the final manuscript.\u0026nbsp;\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\u003c/strong\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eAcknowledgment \u0026nbsp; \u0026nbsp; \u0026nbsp; \u0026nbsp;\u0026nbsp;\u003c/strong\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eOur special thanks go to acknowledge the financial support provided by Arba Minch University. We would like to acknowledge the data collectors who contributed to this work and the study participants for their willingness. \u0026nbsp;\u0026nbsp;\u003c/p\u003e"},{"header":"References","content":"\u003col\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eSory CI, Ciss\u0026eacute; K, Millogo T, Dahourou DL, Ouedraogo HG, Kouanda S. Prevalence and factors associated with stigma among people with disabilities in Niger in 2018: a multi-level analysis. AIDS care. 2022:1-6.\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eBrownridge DA. Partner violence against women with disabilities: Prevalence, risk, and explanations. Violence against women. 2006;12(9):805-22.\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eMartin SL, Ray N, Sotres-Alvarez D, Kupper LL, Moracco KE, Dickens PA, et al. Physical and sexual assault of women with disabilities. Violence against women. 2006;12(9):823-37.\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eBarger E, Wacker J, Macy R, Parish S. 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Intimate Partner Violence and Level of Household Food Scarcity in Mozambique. Journal of Interpersonal Violence. 2024:08862605241307633.\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eGoyomsa GG, Teklehaymanot AN, Arga T, Deribe L. Prevalence of Intimate Partner Violence and Associated Factors among ART user\u0026rsquo;s Women Attending Adama Town Public Health Facility, Central Ethiopia 2019. 2020.\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003c/ol\u003e"}],"fulltextSource":"","fullText":"","funders":[],"hasAdminPriorityOnWorkflow":false,"hasManuscriptDocX":true,"hasOptedInToPreprint":true,"hasPassedJournalQc":"","hasAnyPriority":false,"hideJournal":true,"highlight":"","institution":"","isAcceptedByJournal":false,"isAuthorSuppliedPdf":false,"isDeskRejected":"","isHiddenFromSearch":false,"isInQc":false,"isInWorkflow":false,"isPdf":false,"isPdfUpToDate":true,"isWithdrawnOrRetracted":false,"journal":{"display":true,"email":"[email protected]","identity":"researchsquare","isNatureJournal":false,"hasQc":true,"allowDirectSubmit":true,"externalIdentity":"","sideBox":"","snPcode":"","submissionUrl":"/submission","title":"Research Square","twitterHandle":"researchsquare","acdcEnabled":true,"dfaEnabled":false,"editorialSystem":"","reportingPortfolio":"","inReviewEnabled":false,"inReviewRevisionsEnabled":true},"keywords":"Intimate partner violence, associated factors, married women, Podoconiosis, Boreda district","lastPublishedDoi":"10.21203/rs.3.rs-7527298/v1","lastPublishedDoiUrl":"https://doi.org/10.21203/rs.3.rs-7527298/v1","license":{"name":"CC BY 4.0","url":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/"},"manuscriptAbstract":"\u003ch2\u003eBackground\u003c/h2\u003e\u003cp\u003eIntimate partner violence (IPV) is a serious public health and human rights violation which impacts approximately one in three women worldwide. Disabilities are 1.5 times more likely to be victims of violence than those without a disability. Some existing evidence suggests that women with disabilities are at higher risk of IPV. However, in endemic areas of neglected disabilities such as Podoconiosis and lymphatic filariasis (LF) there is limited evidence in Ethiopia.\u003c/p\u003e\u003ch2\u003eObjective\u003c/h2\u003e\u003cp\u003eTo assess the prevalence of intimate partner violence and its associated factors among married women with and without Podoconiosis in Boreda district, Gamo zone, southern Ethiopia, 2022.\u003c/p\u003e\u003ch2\u003eMethod\u003c/h2\u003e\u003cp\u003eAn institution-based cross-sectional study was conducted among 403 mothers who were enrolled from December 1, 2022, to January 30, 2023. The total sample size was allocated proportionately to the number of women attending antenatal care at each public health facility. Thus, simple random sampling was applied. Kobo Toolbox was used for data collection and cleaning, which was then analyzed using IBM SPSS Version 25. Statistical significance was determined at a \u003cem\u003ep\u003c/em\u003e-value of less than 0.05.\u003c/p\u003e\u003ch2\u003eResult\u003c/h2\u003e\u003cp\u003eIn this study area, the prevalence of intimate partner violence among married women was 248(63.9%) (95% CI: 47.3\u0026ndash;72.1). The associated factors of intimate partner violence were women from food insecure household ((AOR\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;1.54, 95%CI (1.36\u0026ndash;9.14)), non-autonomous women in decision making (AOR\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;2.18, 95%CI (1.13\u0026ndash;4.22)), low wealth index (AOR\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;2.35, 95% CI ((1.03\u0026ndash;4.29)), and having low social support (3.41, 95% CI ((1.20\u0026ndash;9.67)).\u003c/p\u003e\u003ch2\u003eConclusion\u003c/h2\u003e\u003cp\u003eThe prevalence of Intimate Partner Violence was found high in Boreda district. There is a need of giving special attention for women living in rural area, Measures should be taken to raise community awareness, particularly among intimate partners, their families, and government officials. Therefore, it is essential to greatly empower women to increase women\u0026rsquo;s participation in decision making with resources and provide them significant prestige in the home.\u003c/p\u003e","manuscriptTitle":"Intimate partner violence and its associated factors among married women with and without podoconiosis in Boreda district, Gamo zone, southern Ethiopia, 2024: a comparative cross-sectional study","msid":"","msnumber":"","nonDraftVersions":[{"code":1,"date":"2025-09-29 06:55:23","doi":"10.21203/rs.3.rs-7527298/v1","editorialEvents":[{"type":"communityComments","content":0}],"status":"published","journal":{"display":true,"email":"[email protected]","identity":"researchsquare","isNatureJournal":false,"hasQc":true,"allowDirectSubmit":true,"externalIdentity":"","sideBox":"","snPcode":"","submissionUrl":"/submission","title":"Research Square","twitterHandle":"researchsquare","acdcEnabled":true,"dfaEnabled":false,"editorialSystem":"","reportingPortfolio":"","inReviewEnabled":false,"inReviewRevisionsEnabled":true}}],"origin":"","ownerIdentity":"2ecb5ba6-9795-429e-af84-9e917d38a064","owner":[],"postedDate":"September 29th, 2025","published":true,"recentEditorialEvents":[],"rejectedJournal":[],"revision":"","amendment":"","status":"posted","subjectAreas":[],"tags":[],"updatedAt":"2025-11-23T18:38:28+00:00","versionOfRecord":[],"versionCreatedAt":"2025-09-29 06:55:23","video":"","vorDoi":"","vorDoiUrl":"","workflowStages":[]},"version":"v1","identity":"rs-7527298","journalConfig":"researchsquare"},"__N_SSP":true},"page":"/article/[identity]/[[...version]]","query":{"redirect":"/article/rs-7527298","identity":"rs-7527298","version":["v1"]},"buildId":"8U1c8b4HqxoKbykW_rLl7","isFallback":false,"isExperimentalCompile":false,"dynamicIds":[84888],"gssp":true,"scriptLoader":[]}