Peer-reviewed article
Sexual and Reproductive Health Outcomes of Violence Against Women and Girls in Lower-Income Countries: A Review of Reviews
Rose Grace Grose, Julia S. Chen, Katherine A. Roof, Sharon A. Rachel, Kathryn M. Yount ·
Summary
Written by AI, not yet AICS's view · claude-haiku-4-5-20251001This systematic review of reviews examines how gender-based violence affects the sexual and reproductive health of adolescent girls and young women aged 10-24 in low- and middle-income countries. The authors analysed 27 reviews covering five types of violence: child abuse, female genital mutilation, child marriage, intimate partner violence, and non-partner sexual violence. The study found consistent links between violence exposure and negative outcomes including increased numbers of sexual partners, sexually transmitted infections, unwanted pregnancy, and abortion. The authors conclude that addressing gender-based violence is essential to improve sexual and reproductive health for girls and women in lower-income settings.
Key points
- Consistent associations found between gender-based violence and increased number of sexual partners
- Violence exposure linked to gynecological conditions including sexually transmitted infections
- Strong associations between GBV and unwanted or unplanned pregnancy and abortion
- Some types of intimate partner violence associated with greater use of contraception and STI prevention
- Twenty-seven reviews quality-rated; data extracted from 10 highest quality reviews covering 62 unique studies
Limitations
This review of reviews synthesizes secondary literature rather than primary data, so it cannot establish causality or examine intervention effectiveness. The document does not provide information about which specific interventions might reduce violence or its health consequences.
Abstract
Gender-based violence (GBV) against women and girls is pervasive and has negative consequences for sexual and reproductive health (SRH). In this systematic review of reviews, we aimed to synthesize research about the SRH outcomes of GBV for adolescent girls and young women in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs). GBV exposures were child abuse, female genital mutilation/cutting, child marriage, intimate partner violence (IPV), and non-partner sexual violence. PsycINFO, PubMed, and Scopus searches were supplemented with expert consultations, reference-list searches, and targeted organizational website searches. Reviews had to contain samples of girls and young women ages 10-24, although inclusion criteria were expanded post-hoc to capture adolescent-adult combined samples. Twenty-seven reviews were quality-rated. Study-level data were extracted from the 10 highest quality reviews (62 unique studies, 100 samples). Reviews were mostly from Africa and Asia and published between 2011 and 2015. We found consistent associations between GBV and number of sexual partners, gynecological conditions (e.g., sexually transmitted infections [STIs]), unwanted/unplanned pregnancy, and abortion. Some types of IPV also were associated with greater use of contraception/STI prevention. Addressing GBV is essential to improve SRH for girls and women in LMICs.