141st APHA Annual Meeting and Exposition

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293960
Spousal violence and terminated pregnancy among married nigerian women


Monday, November 4, 2013

Korede Adegoke, MBBS, MPH, Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, College of Public Health , University of South Florida, Tampa, Tampa, FL
Ngozichukwuka Agu, MBBS, MPH, Department of Community and Family Health, College of Public Health, University of South Florida, Tampa, FL
Oluyemis Falope, MBBS, MPH, Department of Global Health, College of Publc Health, University of South Florida Tampa, Tampa, FL, Nigeria
Evelyn Anegbe, BS, Dept of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, USF College of Public Health, University of South Florida, Tampa, FL
Martha L. Coulter, DrPH MPH MSW, Department of Community and Family Health, University of South Florida, College of Public Health, Tampa, FL
Introduction: Violence against women is a serious public health problem globally. Intimate partner violence (IPV) occurs in about fifty-percent of women living in sub-Saharan Africa. IPV results in adverse effects on women's physical, mental and reproductive health. This study examines whether IPV is associated with terminated pregnancy among married Nigerian women of reproductive age (15-49 years).

Methods: Data from the 2008 Nigeria Demographic and Health Survey were analyzed. The study population included 16,762 sexually-active, fecund, and married Nigerian women. The exposure variable, spousal violence, was defined as exposure to any form of IPV including physical, emotional, and sexual abuse subtypes. The outcome variable was pregnancy termination. Descriptive statistics were used to estimate the prevalences of IPV and pregnancy termination. Multivariable logistic regression was used to calculate adjusted odds ratios (aOR) and 95% confidence intervals (CI) for the association of interest.

Results: The mean age of women in the study was 30.3 years (SD 8.4). Approximately 25.5% and 13.1% of Nigerian women reported IPV and pregnancy termination, respectively. Women who reported any form of IPV had 1.59 higher odds of pregnancy termination (95% CI: 1.44-1.76). Each IPV subtype was associated with higher odds of pregnancy termination: sexual (aOR: 1.85, 95% CI: 1.48-2.30); physical (aOR: 1.59, 95% CI 1.41-1.79); and emotional (aOR: 1.47, 95% CI (1.32-1.64).

Conclusion: Spousal violence may be an indicator for pregnancy termination. These findings underscore the need for multifaceted intervention programs to reduce IPV and pregnancy termination in order to promote the overall health of vulnerable Nigerian women.

Learning Areas:

Advocacy for health and health education
Public health or related research

Learning Objectives:
Describe the distribution of intimate partner violence and terminated pregnancy in Nigeria by important socio-demographic characteristics. Discuss the association between intimate partner violence and terminated pregnancy in Nigeria.

Keyword(s): Domestic Violence, International Reproductive Health

Presenting author's disclosure statement:

Qualified on the content I am responsible for because: I was involved in all aspects of this study: conception of the research question, literature review, data analysis and writing of the abstract.
Any relevant financial relationships? No

I agree to comply with the American Public Health Association Conflict of Interest and Commercial Support Guidelines, and to disclose to the participants any off-label or experimental uses of a commercial product or service discussed in my presentation.

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