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To assess prevalence and odds for teenage parenthood among former child welfare clients, we used national register data for all children born in Sweden 1972–1983 (), including 49,582 former child welfare clients with varying intervention experiences. Logistic regression models, adjusted for demographic, socio‐economic and familial background factors, were used to estimate odds ratios.Among youth who received interventions in adolescence, 16–19% of the girls and 5–6% of the boys became teenage parents, compared to 3% for girls and 0.7% for boys without child welfare experiences. Youths who entered child welfare services in their teens had four‐ to fivefold adjusted odds for becoming a teenage parent. For other child welfare clients, adjusted odds were mostly twofold.Youth of both sexes who receive child welfare services in adolescence are a high‐risk group for teenage parenthood. Child welfare agencies should, as a minimum, provide each individual client youth with access to birth control counselling and contraceptives.

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We examined prevalence of parental deaths among former out‐of‐home care youths at age 18 and 25, and odds of parental loss compared with peers from similar socio‐economic childhood backgrounds. The study utilized Swedish national register data for 12 entire birth cohorts (1972–1983), 35 550 former out‐of‐home care youths and 1 138 726 cohort peers without out‐of‐home care experiences. Logistic regression models were used to compute odds ratios for parental loss through death. It was especially common among former residents of long‐term out‐of‐home care to be motherless (11%), fatherless (11–13%) or orphaned (3–4%) at age 18, compared with non‐foster care peers (1%, 3% and 0.03%). Twenty‐six per cent had lost at least one parent (4% among non‐foster care peers). At age 25, the figures had increased considerably; 36% had lost at least one parent, compared with 7% in the majority population. Adjusted odds ratios for parental loss among long‐term care youth were strikingly high, particularly for having a deceased mother. In short‐term and intermediate care, most youths with deceased parents had suffered parental loss before entering foster care. For youth from long‐term care, parental death after start of placement was most common.