Comparing barriers and enablers of women's health leadership in India with East Africa and North America.

Background: Women are estimated to hold between 70 and 75% of global health positions worldwide yet persistent inequities in power and leadership remain. There is little information on specific enablers and barriers that women working in public health face in India and how those compare with other regions.

Methods: We collected and analyzed information from women working in public health in India and East Africa (Kenya, Rwanda, and Uganda) and in global health (Canada and United States), to understand and document the specific enablers and barriers women face in India, compared with other regions.

Women's autonomy and experience of physical violence within marriage in rural India: evidence from a prospective study.

Evidence regarding the relationship between married women's autonomy and risk of marital violence remains mixed. Moreover, studies examining the contribution of specific aspects of women's autonomy in influencing the risk of marital violence using measures of autonomy that incorporate its dynamic nature are rare. We investigated the relationship between women's autonomy and their experience of marital violence in rural India using prospective data.

Sex trafficking, physical and sexual violence, and HIV risk among young female sex workers in Andhra Pradesh, India.

Objective: To estimate the prevalence of sex trafficking as a mode of entry into sex work and to examine associations between sex trafficking and HIV vulnerability, recent violence experience, and symptoms of sexual ill health among young female sex workers (FSWs).

Methods: A cross-sectional survey of 1137 FSWS aged 18-25 years residing in Andhra Pradesh, India, was conducted.

Results: In total, 574 (50.

Treatment-seeking for symptoms of reproductive tract infections among young women in India.

Context: Small proportions of Indian women report seeking treatment for symptoms suggestive of reproductive tract infections (RTIs). Most studies on treatment-seeking have focused broadly on women of reproductive age, and little is known about the experiences of adolescent girls and young women, particularly the unmarried.

Methods: Data from 2,742 married and 2,108 unmarried women aged 15-24 who reported at least one symptom of an RTI in the past three months were drawn from a subnationally representative survey of youth in India in 2006-2008.

Husband's preference for a son and women's nutrition: examining the role of actual and desired family composition on women's anaemia and body mass index in India.

This study examines the relationship between the husband's preference for a son, sex composition of children and risk of anaemia and underweight among married Indian women. Information was collected regarding 29,517 couples having at least one child in the nationally representative 2005-06 National Family Health Survey of India. The exposures were husband's preference for a son and sex composition of children: sons only, daughters only and mixed.

Violence in contract work among female sex workers in Andhra Pradesh, India.

Background: Female sex workers (FSWs) are vulnerable to physical and sexual violence at work. This article examines the prevalence of recent physical and sexual violence victimization and associations of type of sex work among a large sample of young FSWs.

Method: We used data from a cross-sectional survey on sex trafficking and sex work in southern India that included 1138 FSWs aged 18-25 years residing in 3 districts of Andhra Pradesh state.

Son preference and intimate partner violence victimization in India: examining the role of actual and desired family composition.

Son preference has been considered as a determinant of women's risk of intimate partner violence (IPV) experience in India, although quantitative evidence from large nationally representative studies testing this relationship is limited. This study examines the association between husband's son preference, sex composition of children and risk of physical and sexual IPV victimization among wives. Information was collected for 26,284 couples in the nationally representative 2005-2006 National Family Health Survey of India.

Association between maternal intimate partner violence victimization and childhood immunization in India.

Empirical evidence regarding the relationship between use of child health services and maternal intimate partner violence (IPV) exposure is sparse. The present study examined the relationship between maternal IPV and childhood immunization status in India using the nationally representative NFHS-3 (n = 6947). Exposure was past year IPV and the outcome was full immunization.

Abuse from in-laws during pregnancy and post-partum: qualitative and quantitative findings from low-income mothers of infants in Mumbai, India.

To examine experiences of perinatal (in pregnancy or post-partum) abuse from in-laws and to assess associations between such experiences and perinatal intimate partner violence (IPV) from husbands, as reported by Indian women residing in low-income communities in Mumbai. The present study includes both qualitative and quantitative research conducted across two phases of study. The qualitative phase involved face-to-face, semi-structured in-depth interviews (n = 32) with women seeking health care for their infants (6 months or younger) and self-reporting emotional or physical abuse from their husband.