Abstract
Objective: To assess the obstetric outcome of teenage pregnancies
Design: Retrospective study over a 5-year period
Setting: Obstetric Unit, King Fahad Hospital, Dammam University, Dammam, Saudi Arabia
Subjects and Methods: Three hundred and forty-two nulliparous adolescent <= 19 years with singleton pregnancy were compared with 342 nulliparous control patients, 20-30 years, with singleton pregnancy as regards their obstetric outcome
Intervention: Each control patient who delivered immediately after the teenage patient was selected for the study.
Main Outcome Measure: Complications and final obstetric outcome of teenage pregnancies as compared to controls
Results: Complications encountered among the teenagers as compared with controls were anemia (p < 0.0001), preterm delivery (p = 0.0284) and low birth weight babies (p = 0.0330). Pregnancy induced hypertension, diabetes mellitus, antepartum hemorrhage, operative delivery rate and neonatal intensive care unit admissions were similar in both groups. Perinatal outcome in the adolescent and control groups was not significantly different.
Conclusions: Teenage pregnant women are considered a high-risk group with an increased incidence of anemia, preterm labor and low birth weight babies. Meticulous antepartum and perinatal monitoring would be required to achieve the best outcome in teenage pregnancies.