Affecting approximately 27% of women worldwide in their lifetime, intimate partner violence (IPV) remains pervasive in the lives of women across the world and urgent action is needed to address it. 1 IPV against women refers to controlling behavior or emotional, sexual, and physical abuse perpetrated by boyfriends or spouses on women. 2 It is a serious, and at times fatal, global health issue that has far-reaching implications for women's emotional and physical well-being. 2,3 Intimate partner violence can be harmful to women at any stage in their lives, 3 but it is particularly dangerous during pregnancy. 4 This is because when it does occur during pregnancy, IPV affects not just the mother's health but also that of the fetus. 5 Adverse maternal outcomes of IPV during pregnancy include the increased risk of prenatal hospitalizations, urinary tract infections, spontaneous preterm labor, and vaginal infections. 6 For the fetus, the most frequently documented negative outcomes of IPV are low birth weight, fetal distress, and fetal death. 7,8
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