NEW ORLEANS, LA. (WLNS) – Homicide is a leading cause of death among pregnant and postpartum women in Louisiana, according to an analysis of birth and death records from 2016 and 2017.

Of the 119 pregnancy-associated deaths for 2016 and 2017 in the state, 13.4% were homicides. Pregnancy and postpartum deaths were highest for girls and women ages 10 to 29.

Homicide risk was twice as high for women and girls during pregnancy and the postpartum period, compared to women and girls who were not pregnant.

The research team was led by Maeve E. Wallace, Ph.D., of Tulane University School of Public Health and Tropical Medicine in New Orleans and the study was published in JAMA Pediatrics.