Has improved health care provision impacted on the obstetric outcome in teenage women?

Abstract

Objective: To determine the obstetric outcome in teenage women managed in the recent decade with easily accessible health care provision. Methods: In a retrospective cohort study, maternal demographics, underlying medical conditions, obstetric complications, preterm birth, type of labor, mode of delivery, and perinatal mortality were compared between 1505 women aged ≤19 years (study group) with 10,320 women aged 20–24 years (comparison group), who were carrying singleton pregnancies beyond 24 weeks of gestation and managed in our hospital between January 1998 and June 2008. Results: The study and comparison groups accounted for 2.2% and 15.1% respectively of the total deliveries. Despite comparable health status and rates of other obstetric complications, teenage women was associated with birth <34 weeks (aOR 2.45, 95% CI 1.67–3.60), birth at 34–36 weeks (aOR 2.13, 95% CI 1.71–2.65), and reduced instrumental vaginal (aOR 0.62, 95% CI 0.50–0.77) and caesarean (aOR 0.79, 95% CI 0.64–0.97) delivery, without increase in perinatal mortality. Conclusions: Teenage women had increased preterm birth, despite improved health care provision, nutrition, and similar incidence of other obstetric complications, but the obstetric and perinatal outcome remained favorable.

Keywords::

• Caesarean delivery
• instrumental delivery
• low birth weight
• perinatal mortality
• preterm birth
• teenage pregnancy

Declaration of Interest: Authors reports no conflicts of interest.