(Press-News.org) Key Takeaways
Young women under the age of 30, Black women, and women with lower education levels are disproportionately affected by intimate partner homicide during pregnancy, reflecting the need to better serve and protect these vulnerable populations.
Particularly by firearms, increasing rates of intimate partner homicide of women who are pregnant or recently pregnant are occurring in states that have limited access to abortion.
Researchers describe a ‘dire need’ to develop effective interventions that break the cycle of intimate partner violence and prevent further deaths.
CHICAGO: Pregnant women living in states with limited access to abortion are experiencing higher rates of intimate partner homicide, particularly by firearms, according to a new study published in the Journal of the American College of Surgeons (JACS).
In an analysis of 9,140 homicides of women aged 12-50 years old, researchers at the University of Chicago found that women who were pregnant or recently pregnant (defined as up to one year post-partum) at the time of their death were 14% more likely to die from homicide at the hands of an intimate partner compared to women who were not pregnant.
They also found that homicides of women who are pregnant or recently pregnant occur at significantly higher rates in states that have limited access to abortion. This state-based trend was not observed in homicides of men, suggesting that access to reproductive health care services may be one factor of many that increase a woman’s risk of intimate partner homicide, the authors said.
“This study reveals that in the United States, there’s an epidemic of preventable violence that disproportionately affects vulnerable populations, including peripartum people,” said Grace Keegan, a third-year medical student at the University of Chicago Pritzker School of Medicine and lead author of the study. “There’s a stark reality that the U.S. health care system lags behind many comparable nations in the prioritization of women’s health. Our country’s maternal mortality rates are extremely high, and what’s even more striking is that the greatest contributor to the high mortality rate is homicide.”
The researchers analyzed data from the National Violent Death Reporting System (NVDRS) of homicides that occurred between the years 2018-2020, before the U.S. Supreme Court decision that overturned Roe v. Wade in 2022. States were classified as restrictive, neutral, or protective towards access to abortion based on classification from the Guttmacher Institute.
Among other key findings of the study:
Between 2018-2020, nearly 500 women aged 12-50 years old were killed by an intimate partner during their peripartum period.
Women who were victims of homicide during the peripartum period were younger (27 years old vs. 33 years old), had lower education status, and were less likely to be married (17% vs. 20%) compared to women not in the peripartum period.
Black women, who make up about 13% of the U.S. population, were disproportionately affected by intimate partner homicide during the peripartum period, accounting for half of the victims. The authors note that this disparity reflects factors in our social and economic systems that contribute to reduced access to reproductive health care in this population.
Firearms were the most frequent weapon used in peripartum homicide, accounting for 63.4% of homicides among the peripartum group compared to 49.5% in women who were not pregnant or recently pregnant.
States categorized as being restrictive to abortion access had a 75% higher rate of peripartum homicide. Peripartum homicide deaths per total state population were highest overall in two states considered restrictive to abortion, Louisiana and Missouri, and one state considered protective to abortion, Nevada.
As a comparison, homicides of men across the same age range and state-based categories did not show the same trends.
“These numbers are staggering. Compared to other high-income countries, the U.S. is a standalone nation in the number of peripartum homicides that we’re seeing,” said co-author Tanya Zakrison, MD, MPH, FACS, a professor of surgery and director of critical trauma research at University of Chicago Medicine. “Intimate partner homicide is absolutely an epidemic of preventable violence, and I think something else that was shocking is how firearms figure so predominantly in the peripartum homicide group compared to the non-peripartum homicide group.”
Although this research did not focus on why women may be most vulnerable to violence during or just after pregnancy, previous research has revealed that several social determinants of health, including food insecurity, psychosocial stress, and housing instability, are associated with an increased risk of firearm violence. These factors are likely exacerbated during pregnancy, when couples may experience increased demands and economic vulnerability.
Breaking a vicious cycle
In their paper, the authors say there is a ‘dire need’ of increased universal screening efforts and effective interventions to break the cycle of violence. Several screening tools for intimate partner violence (IPV) are available, but medical professionals may not be adequately trained on how to provide women with tangible resources once they screen positive for IPV.
“As a society, we need to address the intersectional root causes that have driven our society to this sad reality that we’re in today,” said senior author Justin Cirone, MD, an assistant professor of surgery at Wake Forest School of Medicine in Charlotte, North Carolina.
Stephanie L. Bonne, MD, FACS, FCCM, FAMWA, Chair of the ACS IPV Task Force who was not involved with the research study, noted that all medical professionals should be aware that IPV is a serious, preventable cause of mortality in the U.S. Data from this paper should serve as a warning call to improve resources for vulnerable populations.
“The authors of this peer-reviewed study have shown a specific risk to pregnant women, one that is increased by lack of access to abortion care and easy access to firearms,” said Dr. Bonne, who also serves as chief of trauma and surgical critical care at Hackensack University Medical Center in Hackensack, New Jersey. “These data can be used to inform the development of specific health, policy, and social interventions that can mitigate this problem and keep women and their children safe and healthy.”
The authors noted some limitations of their study. While the NVDRS database is one of the most comprehensive databases of violent deaths, the study is retrospective and does not include near-death experiences that may have occurred. In addition, the researchers could not discern from the data women who were killed but did not know they were pregnant at the time of their death; other reports may be lacking if the police homicide report did not note a recent pregnancy.
“There’s a near certainty that we’re missing many more women than were actually documented,” Dr. Cirone noted.
Lastly, the authors excluded four states from the analysis (Florida, Idaho, North Dakota, and South Dakota) because these states joined the NVDRS in 2018 and had incomplete data at that time; the data also includes the year 2020, during which COVID-19 pandemic lockdowns were prevalent and domestic violence was reported to be higher than usual.
Study coauthors are Mark Hoofnagle, MD, PhD; Julie Chor, MD, MPH; David Hampton, MD; Jennifer Cone, MD, FACS; Abid Khan, MD; Susan Rowell, MD, MBA, FACS; Timothy Plackett, DO, MPH; Andrew Benjamin, MD; Neha Bhardwaj, MD, MS; Selwyn O. Rogers, MD, FACS.
The study is published as an article in press on the JACS website. The study was also presented at the American Association for the Surgery of Trauma (AAST) Annual Meeting on September 21, 2023, in Anaheim, California.
Resources
Resources on IPV for Patients
Resources on IPV for Surgeons
Disclosures: This research did not receive any specific grant from funding agencies in the public, commercial, or not-for-profit sectors. Dr. Zakrison is supported by the NIH (1UG3HD111325, 3UG3HD111325), the Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention, and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. The authors have no disclosures to report related to the scope of this research.
Citation: Keegan G, Hoofnagle M, Chor J. State-Level Analysis of Intimate Partner Violence, Abortion Access, and Peripartum Homicide: A Call for Screening and Violence Interventions for Pregnant Patients. Journal of the American College of Surgeons, 2024. DOI: 10.1097/XCS.0000000000001019
# # #
About the American College of Surgeons
The American College of Surgeons (ACS) is a scientific and educational organization of surgeons that was founded in 1913 to raise the standards of surgical practice and improve the quality of care for all surgical patients. The ACS is dedicated to the ethical and competent practice of surgery. Its achievements have significantly influenced the course of scientific surgery in America and have established it as an important advocate for all surgical patients. The ACS has approximately 90,000 members and is the largest organization of surgeons in the world. “FACS” designates that a surgeon is a Fellow of the ACS.
Follow the ACS on social media: X | Instagram | YouTube | LinkedIn | Facebook
END
Pregnant women living in states with limited access to abortion face higher levels of intimate partner homicide
Study finds significant differences in homicide rates of pregnant women, particularly by firearms, between states based on policies regarding abortion access
2024-02-08
ELSE PRESS RELEASES FROM THIS DATE:
Researchers uncover genetic factors for severe Lassa fever
2024-02-08
While combing through the human genome in 2007, computational geneticist Pardis Sabeti made a discovery that would transform her research career. As a then postdoctoral fellow at the Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard, Sabeti discovered potential evidence that some unknown mutation in a gene called LARGE1 had a beneficial effect in the Nigerian population. Other scientists had discovered that this gene was critical for the Lassa virus to enter cells. Sabeti wondered whether a mutation in LARGE1 ...
Leader in robotics at U-M and beyond elected to National Academy of Engineering
2024-02-08
Feb. 8, 2024
Contact: Katherine McAlpine, 734-647-7087, kmca@umich.edu
Image
Leader in robotics at U-M and beyond elected to National Academy of Engineering
Dawn Tilbury is recognized for advances in manufacturing network control and human-robot interaction, as well as engineering leadership
ANN ARBOR—Dawn Tilbury, the Ronald D. and Regina C. McNeil Department Chair of Robotics at the University of Michigan, has been recognized with one of engineering's greatest honors—election to the National Academy of Engineering.
NAE members are outstanding researchers, ...
16 UTA scholars receive McNair federal research award
2024-02-08
A competitive U.S. Department of Education program that prepares undergraduate students interested in careers in academic research has selected 16 undergraduate students from The University of Texas at Arlington to join.
The McNair Scholars Program was named for physicist and astronaut Ronald E. McNair, the second Black astronaut in U.S. history and one of several crew members killed when the space shuttle Challenger exploded on Jan. 28, 1986. The program assists qualified first-generation ...
Nanofiber bandages fight infection, speed healing
2024-02-08
ITHACA, N.Y. – Cornell University researchers have identified a new way to harness the antioxidant and antibacterial properties of a botanical compound to make nanofiber-coated cotton bandages that fight infection and help wounds heal more quickly.
The findings are especially important given the increasing prevalence of multidrug-resistant bacteria.
Cotton gauze is one of the most common wound dressings; it’s inexpensive, readily available, comfortable and biocompatible. However, it doesn’t promote healing or fight infection.
“Cotton alone cannot provide an answer for these ...
Newly discovered genetic malfunction causes rare lung disease
2024-02-08
The macrophage is one of the body’s most important inhabitants. Meaning “big eater” in Greek, this immune cell consumes and digests problematic elements from microbes and cancer cells to dust and debris. Macrophages are especially important in the lungs, where they both fight bacterial infection and clear the lungs of excess surfactant, a protein- and lipid-rich layer that’s essential to healthy function but can create a sticky buildup if not controlled.
In a recent study, investigators from Rockefeller University ...
Even with resolution, acute kidney injury in newborns can be life-threatening from very first episode
2024-02-08
Our resilient kidneys are invaluable members of the body’s purification system, and they excel at bouncing back after injury. This even holds true for most sick infants in the neonatal intensive care unit. Because of this remarkable ability, dips in kidney function in infants were often overlooked historically in favor of other pressing diseases or symptoms.
But physicians and researchers have shown increased interest in understanding kidney health in newborns and young infants within the last decade, leading to the AWAKEN study (Assessment of Worldwide Acute Kidney Epidemiology in Neonates). With initial ...
High-profile incidents of police brutality sway public opinion more than performance of people’s local law enforcement, new study from NYU Tandon reveals
2024-02-08
National media coverage of police brutality influences public perceptions of law enforcement more than the performance of people’s local police departments, according to data analysis from NYU Tandon School of Engineering, challenging the assumption that public confidence in police depends mostly on feeling safe from local crime.
In a study published in Communications Psychology, a NYU Tandon research team tracked media coverage of police brutality in 18 metropolitan areas in the United States – along with coverage of local crimes – and analyzed tweets from those cities to tease out positive attitudes from negative ...
Why politics bring out the worst in us
2024-02-08
Tap into any social media platform, turn on the television or cue up a podcast, and it is easy to find examples of hypocrisy or bad behavior in political discourse, and new research from University of Nebraska–Lincoln political scientists may explain why.
The findings from a large survey study, co-authored by Kyle Hull, Kevin Smith and Clarisse Warren, demonstrate the willingness of people to bend their morals — even behave unethically — when engaging in the political realm.
Results also suggest that hostility toward outgroups (i.e., opposing party) is the driving factor for the moral ambiguity exercised ...
How fruit flies control the brain's "steering wheel"
2024-02-08
When we walk down the street, we have an internal sense of which way we are heading, from looking at street signals and physical landmarks, and also a sense of where we’d like to go. But how does the brain coordinate between these directions, doing the mental math that tells us which way to turn?
Now, new research describes such a neural process in fruit flies, providing insight into how an animal’s brain steers it in the right direction. The study, published in Nature , shows how neurons that signal the direction in which a fly is currently oriented work together with neurons that signal the direction in which way the ...
SwRI’s Dr. Alan Stern named AIAA Fellow
2024-02-08
SAN ANTONIO — February 8, 2024 —Dr. Alan Stern, a planetary scientist and associate vice president of Southwest Research Institute’s Space Sector, has been named a Fellow of the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics (AIAA). Fellows are recognized for their notable and valuable contributions to the arts, sciences or technology of aeronautics and astronautics. AIAA cited Stern “for outstanding contributions to the exploration of the solar system and the development of commercial spaceflight.”
“I am honored beyond words to be named an AIAA Fellow and thank my nominators very much, including SwRI Vice President Dr. Ben Thacker, who led the nomination,” ...
LAST 30 PRESS RELEASES:
Insulin resistance is linked to over 30 diseases – and to early death in women, study of people in the UK finds
Innovative semaglutide hydrogel could reduce diabetes shots to once a month
Weight loss could reduce the risk of severe infections in people with diabetes, UK research suggests
Long-term exposure to air pollution and a lack of green space increases the risk of hospitalization for respiratory conditions
Better cardiovascular health in early pregnancy may offset high genetic risk
Artificial intelligence method transforms gene mutation prediction in lung cancer: DeepGEM data releases at IASLC 2024 World Conference on Lung Cancer
Antibody–drug conjugate I-DXd shows clinically meaningful response in patients with extensive-stage small cell lung cancer
IASLC Global Survey on biomarker testing reveals progress and persistent barriers in lung cancer biomarker testing
Research shows pathway to developing predictive biomarkers for immune checkpoint inhibitors
Just how dangerous is Great Salt Lake dust? New research looks for clues
Maroulas appointed Associate Vice Chancellor, Director of AI Tennessee
New chickadee research finds cognitive skills impact lifespan
Cognitive behavioral therapy enhances brain circuits to relieve depression
Terasaki Institute awarded $2.3 Million grant from NIH for organ transplantation research using organs-on-a-chip technology
Atoms on the edge
Postdoc takes multipronged approach to muon detection
Mathematical proof: Five satellites needed for precise navigation
Scalable, multi-functional device lays groundwork for advanced quantum applications
Falling for financial scams? It may signal early Alzheimer’s disease
Integrating MRI and OCT for new insights into brain microstructure
Designing a normative neuroimaging library to support diagnosis of traumatic brain injury
Department of Energy announces $68 million in funding for artificial intelligence for scientific research
DOE, ORNL announce opportunity to define future of high-performance computing
Molecular simulations, supercomputing lead to energy-saving biomaterials breakthrough
Low-impact yoga and exercise found to help older women manage urinary incontinence
Genetic studies reveal new insights into cognitive impairment in schizophrenia
Researcher develops technology to provide cleaner energy and cleaner water
Expect the unexpected: nanoscale silver unveils intrinsic self-healing abilities
nTIDE September 2024 Jobs Report: Gains in employment for people with disabilities appear to level off after reducing gaps with non-disabled workers
Wiley enhances NMR Spectral Library Collection with extensive new databases
[Press-News.org] Pregnant women living in states with limited access to abortion face higher levels of intimate partner homicideStudy finds significant differences in homicide rates of pregnant women, particularly by firearms, between states based on policies regarding abortion access