No abstract

This paper concerns the prevalence of intimate partner violence in 15 State capital cities and the Federal District of Brazil. A population-based multi-stage survey in 2002/2003 involved 6,760 15-69-year-old women (respondents). Using the Conflict Tactics Scales--Form R, the overall prevalence of psychological aggression and "minor" and severe physical abuse within couples was 78.3%, 21.5%, and 12.9%, respectively. Prevalence rates varied distinctively between cities. For instance, total physical abuse ranged from 13.2% to 34.8%. On the whole, prevalence was higher in the North and Northeast cities than in the Southeast, South, and Central West. Also, all types of intimate partner violence were more frequent in couples including women who were younger (< 25 years) and had less schooling (< 8 years). After stratifying by gender, although women tended to perpetrate at least one act of physical abuse more often, scores were consistently higher among male partners who were perpetrators. The results are compared to international findings. Regional, demographic, and gender differentials are discussed in light of the growing role of the Brazilian health sector in relation to intimate partner violence.

This article concerns the evaluation of cross-cultural equivalence between the Revised Conflict Tactics Scales (CTS2) originally developed in English and used to identify violence in couples and

No abstract

No abstract

Previous suicide attempts are an important predictor of both repeated attempts and suicide. This paper presents the profile of patients who had attempted suicide and were admitted to a general hospital in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. From April 2001 to March 2002, 160 suicide attempts were recorded (68% women; 26% adolescents). Ingestion of pesticides and prescription drugs were the two most common methods used. The two methods had been used by similar numbers of women, while two-thirds of men had used pesticides. As for prevalence of factors associated with attempted suicide, 21% of patients had been in contact with health services within 30 days prior to the event, 28% mentioned previous suicide attempts, and 23% reported other cases of suicide or attempts in the family. Despite the limited data in Brazil, suicide attempts appear to be an important health problem, particularly among youth. Surveillance systems for suicide attempts could help expand knowledge on this problem.

This paper focuses on the cross-cultural adaptation of the Portuguese version of the Conflict Tactics Scales (CTS-1). Semantic equivalence was evaluated with regard to the referential meaning of words and the general connotative meaning of each item. Measurement equivalence between the Portuguese version and the original instrument was assessed by means of the version's psychometric properties, namely, intra-observer reliability, construct validity, internal consistency, and factor structure. For the different relationships, measurement agreement for physical aggression was moderate to substantial. Cronbach's a's were high for the physical and verbal aggression scales and low for the negotiation scale. As in the original instrument, factor analysis identified three dimensions, representing the negotiation, verbal aggression, and physical aggression scales, plus a severe physical aggression sub-scale. Although some problems still remain, the overall results suggest an adequate process of cross-cultural adaptation of the CTS-1, thus endorsing its use in the Brazilian setting.

This study evaluates the association between postpartum depression and interruption of exclusive breastfeeding in the first two months of life. Cohort study of 429 infants < 20 days of age to four primary health care units in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Interruption of exclusive breastfeeding (outcome) was defined as the introduction of water, other types of liquids, milk, or formulas or any food. Postpartum depression was assessed using the Edinburgh Post-Natal Depression Scale. Associations between variables were expressed as prevalence ratios (baseline) and risk ratios (follow-up), with their respective 95% confidence intervals, estimated by Poisson regression with robust variance. Children of mothers with postpartum depressive symptoms were at higher risk of early interruption of exclusive breastfeeding in the first and second months of follow-up (RR = 1.46; 95%CI: 0.98-2.17 and RR = 1.21; 95%CI: 1.02-1.45, respectively). Considering mothers that were exclusively breastfeeding at the first month, postpartum depression was not associated with interruption of exclusive breastfeeding in the second month (RR = 1.44; 95%CI: 0.68-3.06). The results indicate the importance of maternal mental health for the success of exclusive breastfeeding.