Citation

Taghavi S, Alizadeh M, Khalilzadeh D. Res. J. Biol. Sci. 2008; 3(1): 128-131.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2008, Medwell Journals)

DOI

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PMID

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Abstract

Domestic violence is an important risk factor for pregnancy complications. The aim of this study is to determine the prevalence of domestic violence and its related factors in a population of pregnant women. A cross sectional study was done on 426 women who were attended to an obstetrics ward of a hospital in Iran. A 35 item questionnaire was completed by the respondents. The life time prevalence of domestic violence was 42% and it was 19.3% during pregnancy. There was no relation between socioeconomic status, women`s education and employment and age of marriage with domestic violence. Unemployment, addiction and alcohol use among husbands were related to domestic violence. Slapping and punching were the most common kinds of violent behavior. The prevalence of domestic violence even during pregnancy is high in Iran, so there is a need to increase the awareness of the community and empower the health workers and professionals in order to prevent and control this problem.