Factors Associated with Obstetric and Perinatal Outcomes among Pregnant Teen/Adolescent Filipino 13–19 years old in a Tertiary Hospital

Abstract

Background. The 2013 National Demographic and Health Survey (NDHS) showed that 1 in 10 young Filipino women aged 15–19 years are childbearing. Yet, teenage pregnancy is known to be associated with complications in the mother and the child.
 Objective. This study aimed to describe the sociodemographic characteristics and obstetric and perinatal outcomes of teenage pregnancy among Filipino women aged 13–19 years at the Philippine General Hospital.
 Methods. This is a retrospective study consisting of reviewing the hospital records of teenage mothers from years 2014–2016. Descriptive statistics were used to analyze the gathered data.
 Results. Almost 50% of the cases of adolescent pregnancy yielded obstetric and perinatal complications. The odds of having abnormal obstetric outcome among mothers with obstetric score of g1 is 7.8 times (95% CI: 2.0 to 30.7) higher as compared to other gravida scores and the odds of having at least one perinatal disorder decreases by 19% (95% CI: 6% to 30%) as the mothers regularly visit an obstetric clinic. This study also showed that among the pregnant adolescents, most of their partners were of legal age. Thirty-nine (23.9%) of them were seen by the Adolescent Service while 31(19%) were seen by the Child Protection Unit (CPU).
 Conclusion. With the noted obstetric and perinatal outcomes, teenage pregnancy is an important issue that needs to be dealt with. To ensure good outcomes, provision of health care services designed particularly to cater to the needs of adolescent mothers should be properly and timely implemented. A referral to the Adolescent Service and CPU will greatly improve policies pertaining to provision of holistic care and protection services to teenage mothers.