Citation

Dey T, Thakar R. Obstet. Gynaecol. 2022; 24(2): 90-92.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2022, Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists, Publisher John Wiley and Sons)

DOI

10.1111/tog.12798

PMID

35601644

PMCID

PMC9115482

Abstract

Domestic violence, also termed domestic abuse or intimate partner violence, is defined as “any incident or pattern of incidents of controlling, coercive or threatening behaviour, violence or abuse between those aged 16 years or over who are or have been intimate partners or family members regardless of their gender or sexuality”.1 Women lie at the heart of this domestic violence ‘pandemic': between 2000–2018, almost one in three women globally have experienced violence.2 Additionally, approximately 30% of domestic violence starts or escalates in pregnancy.3 In the UK, 2.3 million adults experienced domestic violence between 2019–2020, of which 70% were women.4 The financial cost of domestic violence is estimated to be approximately £66 billion in England and Wales for the year ending March 2017,5 and despite considerable advocacy, prevalence of domestic violence has remained the same over the last decade.4

A key roadblock to progress in reducing prevalence of domestic violence has been the COVID-19 pandemic. Through implementation of physical distancing and imposed lockdown measures and movement restrictions, women were at increased risk of domestic violence. As of December 2020, there was a 7% increase in the total number of domestic abuse-related offences recorded by the police compared with the previous year, and 64 domestic homicides were recorded between January and June 2020.6 The Saving Lives, Improving Mothers’ Care Rapid report: Learning from SARS-CoV-2 noted that between March–May 2020, two women in the UK died due to domestic violence.7 Concurrently, there has been an increased demand for domestic violence victim services, especially helplines; calls to services in some countries have increased by up to five-fold.8

The impact of domestic violence on the health and wellbeing of women can be devastating and is associated with an increased risk of poor current health, chronic disease and substance abuse, as well as deterioration of mental health.9 A systematic review on the impact of domestic violence and perinatal mental health disorders noted more than 10% of postnatal depression may be attributable to domestic violence and abuse.10 In addition, victims are four times more likely to have anxiety disorders, with a seven-fold increased likelihood of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).11 From an obstetric lens, there is a growing body of evidence linking domestic violence to adverse pregnancy outcomes including preterm birth, low birthweight babies and unexplained stillbirth ...

Language: en