Early teenage pregnancy (12 to 14 years) in Solidaridad, Q. Roo. México: Research Article

Alejandro L. Villalobos-Rodríguez

doi:10.58372/2835-6276.1116

Authors

Alejandro L. Villalobos-Rodríguez

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.58372/2835-6276.1116

Keywords:

Pregnancy in adolescence, Social determinants of health, Sexual health, reproductive health, School teacher, Sexual behavior, Sex education, Health services

Abstract

Introduction. As of 2019, adolescent girls aged 15-19 in low- and middle-income countries had approximately 21 million pregnancies each year, of which approximately 50% were unintended and resulted in 12 million births.

Material and method. Retrospective, cross-sectional, descriptive and observational study on the prevalence of pregnancies in adolescents between 10 and 14 years of age in the municipality of Solidaridad, Q. Roo México, during a five-year period (2018 to 2022) by reviewing the clinical records of all early adolescent pregnant women. Descriptive statistics of central tendency and dispersion were used for analysis.

Results. During the study period, 14 cases of early pregnant adolescents (10 to 14 years old) were found out of a total of 629 pregnancies in early and late adolescents between 10 and 19 years old, distributed as follows: 2018=4; 2019=9, 2020=1.

Discussion. Despite efforts to reduce the incidence of teenage pregnancy, including preventing child marriage, keeping girls in education and improving access to contraception, adolescent girls continue to get pregnant and few developing countries adequately prioritize their care. An insight into adolescent pregnancy experiences will help identify whether context-specific services meet their needs, whether they require additional support, and how to optimize their pregnancy experience.

Conclusions. We found only two factors as Maternal Risk Factors: 1) RF<17 years and 2) lack of birth control. As Fetal Risk Factors three cases at birth by cesarean section. Regarding the other maternal-fetal risk factors, they did not appear in the patients of this age group. It appears that early adolescent mothers can have low-risk pregnancies at this hospital from a biological but not a sociological point of view.

References

World Health Organization. Adolescent pregnancy. 2020. https://www. who. int/news-room/ fact-sheets/ detail/ adolescent-pregnancy. Accessed 28 Apr 2023.

United Nations, Department of Economic and Social Affairs, Population Division. Fertility among young adolescents aged 10 to 14 years. New York: UNDESA, PD, 2020.

Mejía JR, Quincho-Estares AJ, Flores-Rondón AJ, et al. Determinants of adolescent pregnancy in indigenous communities from the Peruvian central jungle: a case–control study. Reprod Health. 2021; 18:203. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12978-021-01247-z

Braverman-Bronstein A, Vidaña-Pérez D, Ortigoza AF, et al. Adolescent birth rates and the urban social environment in 363 Latin American cities. BMJ Global Health. 2022; 7:e009737. Doi: 10.1136/bmjgh-2022-009737

Ahinkorah BO, Hagan JE Jr, Seidu A-A, Budu E, Hormenu T, Mintah JK, et al. Access to Adolescent Pregnancy Prevention Information and Services in Ghana: A Community-Based Case-Control Study. Front Public Health. 2019; 7:382. Doi: 10.3389/fpubh.2019.00382

Crooks R, Bedwell C, Lavender T. Adolescent experiences of pregnancy in low and middle income countries: a meta-synthesis of qualitative studies. BMC Pregnancy Childbirth. 2022; 22:702 https://doi.org/10.1186/s12884-022-05022-1

Darney BG, Fuentes-Rivera E, Saavedra-Avendaño B, et al. Preventing first births among adolescents in Mexico City’s public abortion programme. BMJ Sex Reprod Health. 2021; 47:e9.

Espinoza C, Samandari G, Andersen K. Abortion knowledge, attitudes and experiences among adolescent girls: a review of the literature. Sexual Reprod Health Matters. 2020; 28(1):175–95.

Ramírez-Villalobos D, Monterubio-Flores EA, González-Vázquez TT, et al. Delaying sexual onset: outcome of a comprehensive sexuality education initiative for adolescents in public schools. BMC Public Health. 2021; 21:1439. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12889-021-11388-2

Decker MJ, Pineda N, Gutmann-González A, Brindis CD. Youth-centered maternity care: a binational qualitative comparison of the experiences and perspectives of Latina adolescents and healthcare providers. BMC Pregnancy Childbirth. 2021; 21:349 https://doi.org/10.1186/s12884-021-03831-4

Sámano R, Martínez-Rojano H, Chico-Barba G, et al. Sociodemographic Factors Associated with the Knowledge and Use of Birth Control Methods in Adolescents before and after Pregnancy. Int J Environ Res Public Health. 2019; 16: 1022; doi: 10.3390/ijerph16061022

Küng SA, Saavedra‑Avendaño B, Aldaz-Vélez E, et al. Factors Associated with Support for Adolescent Access to Contraception Among Mexican Catholic Parents. J Religion Health. 2021; 60:1600-12 https://doi.org/10.1007/s10943-021-01186-w

McDermott ER, Jahromi LB, Umaña-Taylor AJ, Martinez-Fuentes S, Jones SM, Updegraff KA. Mexican-Origin Adolescent Mothers’ Economic Contexts, Educational Re-Engagement, and their Children’s School Readiness Child Dev. 2021 July; 92(4): e513–e530. doi:10.1111/cdev.13514.

Vanderkruik R, Gonsalves L, Kapustianyk G, Allen T, Say L. Mental health of adolescents associated with sexual and reproductive outcomes: a systematic review. Bull World Health Organ 2021; 99:359-73. Doi: http://dx.doi.org/10.2471/BLT.20.254144

Montoya JA, Plant A, Neffa‑Creech D, Orvañanos C, Barker K. Overcome the Fear (Vencer el Miedo): using entertainment education to impact adolescent sexual and reproductive health and parent‑child communication in Mexico. BMC Public Health. 2022; 22:2366 https://doi.org/10.1186/s12889-022-14853-8.