1 in 6 Gun Deaths for Women Occur In or Around Pregnancy
By Carole Tanzer Miller HealthDay Reporter
WEDNESDAY, March 13, 2024 -- A woman's risk of intentional death by firearm rises during and shortly after pregnancy, new research shows.
About 1 in 6 intentional firearm-related deaths in women of childbearing age occurred during pregnancy or within a year of childbirth, the study found.
Dr. Naima Joseph, of the Boston Medical Center, led the inquiry, which included data on women between 14 and 44 who died by suicide or homicide involving a firearm between 2008 and 2019.
That period saw 4,204 firearm-related homicides and deaths by suicide nationwide.
Of the 2,098 homicides of women listed in the National Violent Death Reporting System, 22% were pregnancy-related. Among 2,106 gun-related deaths that were classed as suicides, 11% of them were pregnancy-related.
Writing recently in the American Journal of Preventive Medicine, researchers expressed fear that the trends may get even worse.
"There is concern that the current national political landscape will serve to worsen the risks of intimate partner violence for pregnant individuals, through both restriction of access to abortions and limiting states' abilities to restrict firearms," they wrote.
Researchers found several notable trends:
-
On average, women who died by pregnancy-associated homicide were 22.2 years of age and 54.8% were Black women. Those who died by pregnancy-associated suicide were older — 28.5 years on average, and 80.5% were white women
-
61.6% of pregnancy-related suicides were tied to ongoing conflict with or violence by a current or former partner, compared to 51.9% of homicides unrelated to pregnancy
-
4.2% of pregnancy-related suicides occurred in women who had recently experienced intimate partner violence.
"The findings are concerning and indicate that enhanced strategies supporting mental health treatment, effective interventions addressing interpersonal violence and strategic public health interventions addressing firearm safety are urgently needed to prevent needless pregnancy-associated violent deaths," the authors wrote.
Sources
- American Psychiatric Association, news release, March 11, 2023
Disclaimer: Statistical data in medical articles provide general trends and do not pertain to individuals. Individual factors can vary greatly. Always seek personalized medical advice for individual healthcare decisions.
© 2024 HealthDay. All rights reserved.
Posted March 2024
Read this next
One Key to Weight Loss for Men: Competing for Cash
WEDNESDAY, May 15, 2024 -- A competitive game with a potential cash reward appeared to help overweight British men lose weight, researchers report. The incentive was winning the...
Report Highlights Big Gaps in Cancer Outcomes Based on Race
WEDNESDAY, May 15, 2024 -- U.S. cancer death rates are continuing to drop, falling by 33% between 1991 and 2020. However, not all Americans are reaping the benefits from advances...
Early Hints at a Gene Therapy Cure for Herpes
WEDNESDAY, May 15, 2024 -- An experimental gene therapy could one day provide a first-ever cure for genital and oral herpes, researchers report. The gene therapy removed 90% or...
More news resources
- FDA Medwatch Drug Alerts
- Daily MedNews
- News for Health Professionals
- New Drug Approvals
- New Drug Applications
- Drug Shortages
- Clinical Trial Results
- Generic Drug Approvals
Subscribe to our newsletter
Whatever your topic of interest, subscribe to our newsletters to get the best of Drugs.com in your inbox.
