Pregnancy-associated femicide

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Pregnancy-associated femicide is a form of gender-based violence involving the murder of a woman during the period of pregnancy and up to 1 year after childbirth.^[1][2]

Pregnancy increases the likelihood of femicide.^[1] Globally, intimate partner violence (IPV) precedes the majority of pregnancy-associated femicides, with male intimate partners being the primary perpetrators.^[3] In the United States, the leading cause of death for pregnant and postpartum women is femicide.^[4] Women are more likely to be murdered during the pregnancy and postpartum period than to die from the three principal obstetric causes of maternal death (high-blood pressure disorders, hemorrhage, and sepsis).^[4]

Pregnancy-associated femicide is a developing field of study.^[3] Researchers and activists are calling for the implementation of intervention methods in healthcare and policy, as well as standardized documentation of incidence rate, in order to address the sociopolitical factors contributing to the issue.^[3]