Pregnancy resulting from sexual violence committed by the intimate partner: characterization of the crime and abortion provided for by law

Abstract

Introduction: intimate partner violence is highly prevalent in Brazil. Among the serious consequences for women’s health, pregnancy resulting from this circumstance stands out. Objective: To compare pregnancy and abortion characteristics among women with sexual violence committed by an intimate partner and an unknown aggressor. Methods: cross-sectional study with women aged ≥14 years with pregnancies resulting from sexual violence and legal abortion request attended at the Pérola Byington Hospital, São Paulo, Brazil, between 1994 and 2018. They compared 1,881 cases in which the sexual offender was a stranger with 192 cases committed by the intimate partner. The variables considered sociodemographic data of the pregnant woman, sexual violence, legal procedures and abortion, analyzed in SPSS 20.0 software. Study approved by the Research Ethics Committee of the São Francisco de Barreiras University Center, No. 3,668,297. Results: pregnant women who were assaulted by an intimate partner had a higher mean age (27.4±6.8 years), reported less work (p=0.032) and were not in a union (p=0.010). Cases involving an intimate partner had a higher frequency of physical violence (p<0.001) in the private space (p<0.001), with less search for the pregnant woman by the police (p=0.013) and medico-legal examination (p=0.034). Abortion was similar in both groups, but dropout from the procedure was higher in cases with an intimate partner (p=0.001). Conclusion: when pregnant with sexual violence perpetrated by an intimate partner, women have different trajectories from those raped by strangers to resort to legal abortion. The lesser disclosure to the police of the crime and the greater withdrawal of legal abortion may suggest an intimidating role of the aggressor intimate partner.