Adolescent pregnancy outcomes and risk factors in Malaysia

Omar, Khairani; Hasim, Suriati; Muhammad, Noor Azimah; Jaffar, Aida; Hashim, Syahnaz Mohd; Siraj, Harlina Halizah

doi:10.1016/j.ijgo.2010.06.023

« Previous Next »International Journal of Gynecology & Obstetrics
Volume 111, Issue 3 , Pages 220-223, December 2010

Adolescent pregnancy outcomes and risk factors in Malaysia

Khairani Omar
- Family Medicine Department, Faculty of Medicine, Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia (UKM) Medical Centre, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
- Corresponding author. Family Medicine Department, Faculty of Medicine, UKM Medical Centre, Jalan Yaacob Latiff, 56000 Cheras, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. Tel.: +60 3 91456117; fax: +60 3 91738153.
Suriati Hasim
- Family Medicine Specialist, Segamat Health Centre, Johor, Malaysia
Noor Azimah Muhammad
- Obstetric and Gynecology Department, Faculty of Medicine, UKM Medical Centre, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
Aida Jaffar
- Family Medicine Department, Faculty of Medicine, Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia (UKM) Medical Centre, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
Syahnaz Mohd Hashim
- Family Medicine Department, Faculty of Medicine, Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia (UKM) Medical Centre, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
Harlina Halizah Siraj
- Obstetric and Gynecology Department, Faculty of Medicine, UKM Medical Centre, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

Received 23 March 2010; received in revised form 4 June 2010; accepted 23 July 2010. published online 30 August 2010.

Abstract

Objective

To assess the outcomes and risk factors of adolescent pregnancies in 2 major hospitals in Malaysia.

Methods

We conducted a case-control study of pregnant girls aged 10 through 19years. The controls were women aged 20 through 35years who did not become pregnant in their adolescence. Cases and controls were matched for parity and place of delivery. Data were collected from questionnaires and the hospitals’ medical records.

Results

The study included 102 cases and 102 controls. There were significant associations between adolescent pregnancy and low education level, low socioeconomic status, being raised by a single parent, not engaging in extracurricular school activities, engaging in unsupervised activities with peers after school, and substance abuse (P<0.05 for all); being anemic, being unsure of the expected delivery date, and having few antenatal visits and a late delivery booking; and low Apgar scores and perinatal complications.