Domestic violence against women--an international concern.

Domestic violence is a pattern of assault and coercive behaviour including physical, sexual and psychological attacks, by a person against his/her own intimate partner. Women are more frequently the victims. After a global overview of the prevalence and nature of domestic violence against women especially in Mauritius, this articles provides a discussion about health problems and risk factors among the female victims with the objective of giving preventive measures to eradicate it from society. NGOs, along with legislative measures, have proven helpful in improving quality of life and preventing violence-related injuries among women. The health sector also plays an important role as part of multi-sector efforts in early detection and prevention of cases of domestic violence. Psychiatrists are in a unique position for early identification of such patients as well as intervention.

Cancer Incidence in the Republic of Mauritius- 5 Years Review 1997 to 2001

6484 new cases of cancer have been registered in Mauritius during 1997-2001 corresponding to Age-Standardized Incidence Rates (ASR world) of 99.9 per 100;000 in men and 121.1 per 100;000 in women. The commonest sites of cancer in men were colo-rectal cancer (9.5) followed closely by oral cavity et pharynx (9.4) and prostate (8.8). In women breast cancer was; by far; the main site (28; ASR 31.7) ahead of cervical cancer (11.7) and colorectal (5.7) and leukaemias (4.7). Comparisons with figures from neighboring countries show much lower rates in Mauritius for both sexes