Prevalence and evolution of intimate partner violence before and during pregnancy: a cross-sectional study

Abstract

BackgroundIntimate partner violence (IPV) before and during pregnancy is associated with a broad range of adverse health outcomes. Describing the extent and the evolution of IPV is a crucial step in developing interventions to reduce the health impact of IPV.The objectives are to study the prevalence of psychological abuse, as well as physical & sexual violence, and to provide insight into the evolution of IPV 12 months before and during pregnancy.MethodsBetween June 2010 and October 2012, a cross-sectional study was conducted in 11 antenatal care clinics in Belgium. Consenting pregnant women were asked to complete a questionnaire (available in Dutch, French and English) in a separate room. Ethical clearance was obtained in all participating hospitals.ResultsThe overall percentage of IPV was 14.3% (95% CI: 12.7 - 16.0) 12 months before pregnancy and 10.6% (95% CI: 9.2 - 12.1) during pregnancy. Physical partner violence before as well as during pregnancy was reported by 2.5% (95% CI: 1.7 - 3.3) of the respondents (n = 1894), sexual violence by 0.9% (95% CI 0.5 - 1.4), and psychological abuse by 14.9% (95% CI: 13.3 - 16.7). Risk factors identified for IPV were being single or divorced, having a low level of education, and choosing another language than Dutch to fill out the questionnaire. The adjusted analysis showed that physical partner violence (aOR 0.35, 95% CI: 0.22 - 0.56) and psychological partner abuse (aOR 0.7, 95% CI: 0.63 - 0.79) were significantly lower during pregnancy compared to the period of 12 months before pregnancy. The difference between both time periods is greater for physical partner violence (65%) compared to psychological partner abuse (30%). The analysis of the frequency data showed a similarly significant evolution for physical partner violence and psychological partner abuse, but not for sexual violence.ConclusionThe IPV prevalence rates in our study are slightly lower than what can be found in other Western studies, but even so IPV is to be considered a prevalent problem before and during pregnancy. We found evidence, however, that physical partner violence and psychological partner abuse are significantly lower during pregnancy.Electronic supplementary materialThe online version of this article (doi:10.1186/1471-2393-14-294) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

Intimate partner violence and psychosocial health, a cross-sectional study in a pregnant population

“…Prevalence rates are mainly situated at the high end of the continuum in African and Latin American countries, and at the lower end in European and Asian countries. Although estimates are highly variable due to methodological challenges, the majority of studies show rates within the range of 3.9 to 8.7 % [ 3 , 4 , 6 , 8 , 10 – 17 ]. Although the exact prevalence of IPV around the time of pregnancy remains unclear, it is evident that it affects a substantial group of women.…”

“…Although the exact prevalence of IPV around the time of pregnancy remains unclear, it is evident that it affects a substantial group of women. In Belgium, we recently showed [ 17 ] that as many as 15.8 % (95 % CI 14.2–17.7) of women experience IPV (incl. psychological abuse) before and/or during pregnancy.…”

The impact of a referral card-based intervention on intimate partner violence, psychosocial health, help-seeking and safety behaviour during pregnancy and postpartum: a randomized controlled trial

“…Unfortunately, to our knowledge no clear clinical cut-off value is currently available and therefore we used the scale as a continuous variable where possible. We have previously reported more details on the assessment of the violence [20] and on psychosocial health measures [48].…”

“…Victimisation prevalence rates in African and Latin American countries are mainly situated at the high end of the continuum and the European and Asian rates at the lower end. Though estimates are highly variable due to methodological challenges, the majority of studies find rates within the range of 3.9% to 8.7%, with most studies merely including physical and/or sexual partner violence victimisation as psychological/emotional violence remains difficult to demarcate and measure [4,8,10,[12][13][14][15][16][17][18][19][20]. In Belgium, we recently reported [20] that 15.8% (95% CI 14.2 -17.7) of the women experienced IPVv (incl.…”

Intimate Partner Violence and Failure to Thrive in Children Less than Two Years of Age

“…As noted in another analysis of these same data (Kimeto et al, in preparation), all of the women in this study were smokers, and there is a strong relationship between smoking and depression . The prevalence of IPV during pregnancy measured in this analysis is in line with those of other population-based samples of pregnant women (Daoud et al, 2012;Deshpande & Lewis-O'Connor, 2013;Silva, Ludermir, Araujo, & Valongueiro, 2011;Van Parys, Deschepper, Michielsen, Temmerman, & Verstraelen, 2014). Thirty-five percent of women were abused during pregnancy and this increased by about 9% in the postpartum period.…”