title: Femicides: female homicide in Brazil.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To assess female homicide rates due to aggression according to sociodemographic and health indicators.
  
  
  METHODS
  Ecological study on female homicides due to aggression in Brazil between 2003 and 2007. Information on 19,459 deaths were obtained form the Brazilian Mortality Database. Standardized female homicide rates due to aggression were correlated with 28 socioeconomic, demographic and health indicators, using Pearson's correlation test. Multiple linear regression was performed including variables with p < 0.20 and excluding those with multicollinearity.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The standardized female homicide rate due to aggression was 4.1/100,000 during the study period. After adjustment, three variables remained significantly associated with female homicides: birth rate (p = 0.072), percentage of Evangelicals (p = 0.019) and male homicides due to aggression (p < 0.001). The model had a predictive power of 69% (r² = 0.699). The Brazilian states of Espírito Santo, Pernambuco, Mato Grosso, Rio de Janeiro, Rondônia, Alagoas, Mato Grosso do Sul, Roraima e Amapá showed the highest rates during the study period.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The female homicide rates due to aggression were high in Brazil and varied by region. The association with male homicides due to aggression stresses the importance of reducing structural violence to protect women against violence.
authors.affiliation: Curso de Análise de Políticas e Sistemas de Saúde, Programa de Pós-Graduação em Enfermagem, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul, Porto Alegre, RS, Brasil. stelameneghel@gmail.com
authors.forename: Stela Nazareth
authors.initials: SN
authors.lastname: Meneghel
authors.forename: Vania Naomi
authors.initials: VN
authors.lastname: Hirakata
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000374:Aggression; D001938:Brazil / Q000453:epidemiology; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D005260:Female; D006708:Homicide / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D008875:Middle Aged; D012307:Risk Factors; D012959:Socioeconomic Factors; D014930:Women; D055815:Young Adult