TY - JOUR PY - 1999// TI - Interpersonal conflict and physical abuse in relation to pregnancy and infant birth weight JO - Journal of women's health and gender-based medicine A1 - Grimstad, H. A1 - Schei, Berit A1 - Backe, B. A1 - Jacobsen, G. SP - 847 EP - 853 VL - 8 IS - 6 N2 - Women's experiences of different kinds of abusive behavior by their partners were studied in relation to birth weight of the women's infants and other pregnancy outcome measures. Eighty-four women who delivered a low-birth-weight (< 2500 g) infant (cases) and 90 women who delivered an infant with higher birth weight (controls) were interviewed in a case-control study. Information about the partners' behavior during conflicts were obtained by use of a modified Conflict Tactics Scale. Different interpersonal conflict behaviors were categorized as negative verbal interaction or moderate or severe physical abuse. Women who had experienced moderate or severe violence in a relationship also had experienced negative verbal interaction from their partner. Low birth weight was not associated with experiences of any interpersonal conflict behavior in the total sample (OR 0.75, 95% CI 0.42-1.37). Among women with a low birth weight infant, mean birth weight was 261 g lower among those who reported any interpersonal conflict behavior during pregnancy. Birth of a low-birth-weight infant was not associated with abuse in a wide sense. Also, such abuse was unassociated with a variety of other complications during pregnancy, lifestyle characteristics, or pregnancy outcome measures.

Language: en

LA - en SN - 1524-6094 UR - http://dx.doi.org/10.1089/152460999319165 ID - ref1 ER -