Introduction: Violence and abuse are phenomena with serious impacts on both the social structure as in everyday life and quality of life of individuals. Objectives: To describe the effects of psychoanalytic psychotherapy in the care of patients who have been victims of spousal abuse. Methodology: A comprehensive review was developed about the effects of psychoanalytic psychotherapy in the care of patients abused in the couple. A total of 13 articles were found and were subject to methodological quality review. Results: Three categories of analysis were identified: method of intervention, psychotherapeutic main objectives and psychotherapeutic achievements in patient care. Discussion: Although achievements are evident in patients victims of abuse treated with psychoanalytic psychotherapy, more research is needed in this area to support the efficacy of this treatment.