The obstetric implications of teenage pregnancy

A retrospective review was performed on the obstetric outcome of teenagepregnancies delivered in 1 year in a tertiary centre. The results werecompared with the rest of the obstetric population in the same hospital inthe same year. The teenage mothers (n = 194) had increased incidence ofsexually transmitted diseases (5.2 versus 1.0%, P < 0.05), and pretermlabour (13.0 versus 7.0%, P < 0.01), but decreased incidence ofgestational glucose intolerance (3.1 versus 11.4%, P < 0.001), whencompared with the non-teenage mothers (n = 4914). There was no differencein the types of labour, while the incidence of Caesarean section was lower(4.1 versus 12.6%, P < 0.001) in the teenage mothers. Although theincidence of low birthweight was higher in the teenage mothers (13.5 versus6.5%, P < 0.001), there was no significant difference in the meanbirthweight, gestation at delivery, incidence of total preterm delivery, orperinatal mortality or morbidity. The results indicate that the major riskassociated with teenage pregnancies is preterm labour, but the perinataloutcome is favourable. The good results accomplished in our centre could beattributed to the free and readily available prenatal care and the qualityof support from the family or welfare agencies that are involved with thecare of teenage mothers.