Homicides and Suicides Linked to Pregnancy Often Associated with Mental Health Conditions, Substance Use Disorders and Intimate Partner Violence, Study Suggests

Maternal mortality in the United States in on the rise. Scientists increasingly recognize that pregnancy-associated deaths — those due to conditions unrelated to the physiologic effects of pregnancy — are important and potentially preventable contributors to maternal mortality. Maternal deaths due to homicide and suicide are thought to represent a significant number of pregnancy-associated deaths, but have been under explored as an area of potential intervention.