The objectives were to investigate the death of women by violent injuries, including induced abortion, in the Province of Córdoba, Argentina, 1992-1996 and to perform a bibliographic review on maternal death due to violence. Reports of autopsies of all violent deaths in women aged 12-44 years were reviewed to determine the cause of death for cases of suicide, homicide, accident or induced abortion and a bibliographic review was performed through MEDLINE. Two hundred and seventy two women died due to violence, including 22 which were due to complications of induced abortion. The remaining 250 deaths were: 44 (17.6%) by suicide, 51 (20.4%) by homicide and 155 (62%) by traffic accidents, including 6 pregnant women (2 died by suicide, 1 by homicide and 3 by accidents). Violence against women and pregnant women is a growing problem in developing countries. The implication of a simplified screening has been proposed to identify abuses against women, searching for frequency of abuse, its severity and to determine who provokes it.