| HOME | HELP | FEEDBACK | SUBSCRIPTIONS | ARCHIVE | SEARCH | TABLE OF CONTENTS |
|
|
|
|||||||
|
|||||||||
ORIGINAL RESEARCH |
From Epidemiology, Department of Public Health and Clinical Medicine, Umeå University, Umeå, Sweden; Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, León University Hospital, León, Nicaragua; Department of Preventive Medicine, National Autonomous University, León, Nicaragua; Obstetrics and Gynecology, Department of Clinical Sciences, Umeå University, Umeå, Sweden; Public Health Sciences Division, ICDDR,B: Centre for Health and Population Research, Dhaka, Bangladesh; and Program for Appropriate Technology in Health (PATH), Washington, DC.
Address reprint requests to: Eliette Valladares, MD, Epidemiology, Department of Public Health and Clinical Medicine, Umeå University, SE-901 85 Umeå, Sweden; E-mail: eliette.valladares{at}epiph.umu.se.
OBJECTIVE: To assess whether being physically abused during pregnancy increases the risk of a low birth weight (LBW) infant.
METHODS: We conducted a hospital-based case-control study in León, Nicaragua. Cases consisted of 101 newborns with a birth weight under 2500 g, and for each case two controls with a birth weight over 2500 g were selected randomly from infants born the same day. Anthropometry of newborns was done immediately after birth, and background information and data on experiences of violence and potential confounders were obtained through private interviews with mothers. Crude and adjusted odds ratios (ORs) and population-attributable proportion were calculated for exposure to partner abuse in relation to LBW. Multivariate logistic regression analysis was used to control for potential confounding.
RESULTS: Seventy-five percent of LBW newborns (cases) were small for gestational age and 40% were preterm. Twenty-two percent of the mothers of LBW infants had experienced physical abuse during pregnancy by their intimate partners compared with 5% of controls. Low birth weight was associated with physical partner abuse even after adjustment for age, parity, smoking, and socioeconomic status (OR 3.9; 95% confidence interval 1.7, 9.3). Given a causal interpretation of the association, about 16% of the LBW in the infant population could be attributed to physical abuse by a partner in pregnancy.
CONCLUSION: Physical abuse by a partner during pregnancy is an independent risk factor for LBW.
This article has been cited by other articles:
|
|
 |
|
  R. Pena, W. Perez, M. Melendez, C. Kallestal, and L.-A. Persson The Nicaraguan Health and Demographic Surveillance Site, HDSS-Leon: A platform for public health research Scand J Public Health, May 1, 2008; 36(3): 318 - 325. [Abstract] [PDF]
|
|
|
|
 |
|
 M. A. Rodriguez, M. V. Heilemann, E. Fielder, A. Ang, F. Nevarez, and C. M. Mangione Intimate Partner Violence, Depression, and PTSD Among Pregnant Latina Women Ann. Fam. Med, January 1, 2008; 6(1): 44 - 52. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]
|
|
|
|
|
|
D. K. Kaye, A. M. Ekstrom, A. Johansson, G. Bantebya, and F. M. Mirembe Escaping the triple trap: Coping strategies of pregnant adolescent survivors of domestic violence in Mulago hospital, Uganda Scand J Public Health, March 1, 2007; 35(2): 180 - 186. [Abstract] [PDF]
|
|
|
|
 |
|
 S. Ahmed, M. A. Koenig, and R. Stephenson Effects of Domestic Violence on Perinatal and Early-Childhood Mortality: Evidence From North India Am J Public Health, August 1, 2006; 96(8): 1423 - 1428. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]
|
|
|
|
 |
|
 C. C. Pallitto, J. C. Campbell, and P. O'Campo Is Intimate Partner Violence Associated with Unintended Pregnancy? A Review of the Literature Trauma Violence Abuse, July 1, 2005; 6(3): 217 - 235. [Abstract] [PDF]
|
|
|
|
 |
|
 D. El Kady, W. M. Gilbert, G. Xing, and L. H. Smith Maternal and Neonatal Outcomes of Assaults During Pregnancy Obstet. Gynecol., February 1, 2005; 105(2): 357 - 363. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]
|
|
| HOME | HELP | FEEDBACK | SUBSCRIPTIONS | ARCHIVE | SEARCH | TABLE OF CONTENTS |
