Comparison of Pregnancy Outcomes between Early and Late Teenage Mothers

Abstract

Comparison of Pregnancy Outcomes between Early and Late Teenage Mothers

Apichai Maharungruangrat MD

Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Taksin Hospital, Bangkok Metropolitan Administration (BMA)

Objective: To compare the pregnancy outcomes between early and late teenage mothers.

Methods: This study was a retrospective cohort study comparing pregnancy complications as well as neonatal outcomes of 250 early teenage mothers (< 15 years old) and 500 late teenage mothers (16 - 19 years old). Inclusion criteria were teenage mothers who were nullipara and who had singleton pregnancy with gestational age > 28 weeks and who delivered at Taksin Hospital, BMA between September 1, 2006 and December 31, 2009. The late teenage mothers were selected from those who delivered just before and after each early teenage mother by using the nearest hospital admission number to that early teenage mother.

Results: Mean age of early teenage mothers was 14.7 + 0.6 years while that of late teenage mothers was 17.6 + 1.1 years. Significantly higher percentage of early teenage mothers was students compared with late teenage mothers (16.4% vs 5.6%). Early teenage mothers had significantly poorer antenatal care than late teenage mothers in many aspects: no antenatal care, 11.6% vs 5.6%; mean total visits, 6.1 + 3.7 times vs 7.5 + 4.9 times; and 1^st antenatal visit before gestational age 20 weeks, 32.0% vs 55.2%, respectively. Unfavorable maternal complications and neonatal outcomes were significantly higher in early teenage mothers in terms of: anemia, 53.2% vs 40.8%; preterm delivery, 21.6% vs 15.4%; low birth weight infant, 19.2% vs 12.0%; and low Apgar scores at 1^st minute and 5^th minute (or birth asphyxia), 4.0% vs 1.2% and 1.6 % vs 0.2%, respectively.

Conclusion: Early teenage mothers had poor antenatal care, increased risk of anemia, preterm delivery, low birth weight infant, and birth asphyxia when compared with late teenage mothers.

Keywords: pregnancy outcomes, early teenage mother, late teenage mother