Domestic homicide: risk assessment and professional duty to warn.

Battering has been associated with increased risk of homicide in the home. Homicide involving partners in a current or past intimate relationship may not have the same characteristics as other homicides. Physicians, nurses, and other health care professionals--who frequently see battered women as patients--should understand the dynamics, risk factors, and legal responsibilities related to domestic homicide in order to help prevent this form of violence.