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Does Spousal Physical Abuse Affect the Outcome of Pregnancy?

Berit Schei, Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology/Department of Community Medicine and General Practice Univ. of Trondheim, Eirik Jarls gt. 10, Trondheim, Address for offprints: Berit Schei Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology. Department of Community Medicine and General Practice Univ. of Trondheim Eirik Jarls gt. 10 Trondheim, Norway

Sven Ove Samuelsen

Department of Epidemiology, National Institute of Public Health, Oslo

Leiv S. Bakketeig

Department of Community Medicine and General Practice, Univ. of Trondheim and Head of Department, Department of Epidemiology, National Inst. of Public Health Oslo, Norway

The relationship between living in a physicial abusive relationship and adverse outcome of pregnancy was examined using a structured interview including an obstetrical history. Sixty-six women living in a physically abusive relationship, and 114 women randomly selected and not presently living in such a relationship were interviewed. The women reported 312 completed pregnancies. Five of these were twin pregnancies and one was a stillbirth without information on birth weight. Of the 306 pregnancies included in the analysis, violence had occurred in 40. The mean birth weight of births reported by women exposed to violence during pregnancy was 229 g less than the equivalent figure in non-exposed pregnancies. Adjustment for education, primiparity, and history of addiction reduced the difference in mean birth weight to 175 g.

Key Words: Spouse abuse • violence in pregnancy • psychosocial obstetrics • low birth weight • adverse perinatal outcomes.

Scandinavian Journal of Public Health, Vol. 19, No. 1, 26-31 (1991)
DOI: 10.1177/140349489101900105


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