Effects of Domestic Violence on Perinatal and Early-Childhood Mortality: Evidence From North India

• NCJ Number: 217416
• Journal: American Journal of Public Health Volume: 96 Issue: 8 Dated: August 2006 Pages: 1423-1428
• Author(s): Saifuddin Ahmed Ph.D.; Michael A. Koenig Ph.D.; Rob Stephenson Ph.D.
• Date Published: August 2006
• Length: 6 pages
• Publication Format: Article
• Publication Type: Report (Study/Research)
• Language: English
• Country: United States of America
• Note: Free online PDF and HTML access to the American Journal of Public Health is provided by the publisher 24 months after individual issues are released.

Annotation

This study investigated the effect of physical violence during pregnancy on perinatal, neontatal, postneonatal, and early-childhood mortality in India.

Abstract

Results indicated that 18 percent of the 2,199 women in the sample had experienced domestic violence during their last pregnancy. The risks of perinatal and neonatal mortality were more than 2.5 times higher for the mothers who had experienced domestic violence during pregnancy. There was no significant relationship between domestic violence victimization during pregnancy and either postnatal or early-childhood mortality. The findings suggest that domestic violence victimization during pregnancy is a significant risk factor for perinatal and neonatal mortality. Levels of perinatal and neonatal mortality in the general population remain high in low-resource areas of India. A focus on domestic violence prevention within programs that address early mortality would reduce early mortality rates in these areas. Data were drawn from two surveys conducted in the most populous State of India between 1995 and 1996, which focused on female and male reproductive health, respectively. A stratified multistage cluster sample design was used to obtain a sample of 45,277 women of reproductive-age in 28 districts of the State for the first survey. The second survey, which focused on male reproductive health, was administered 6 months later to 6,606 males who were identified as husbands in households surveyed during the female survey. The current analysis focused on 2,199 participants who had pregnancy outcomes during the 3-year period preceding the survey and who had matched males who responded to the male reproductive health survey. The survey focused on socioeconomic and demographic characteristics; contraceptive knowledge and behavior; health expenditures; reproductive health; and husband’s perpetration of violence against his wife (male survey only). Data analysis included the use of logistic regression models and time-to-event analysis with Cox proportional hazards model. Future research should continue to focus on the link between domestic violence and mortality. Figure, tables, references