Teen pregnancy or early pregnancy It can be defined as one that occurs within the first two years of gynecological age (time elapsed since menarche) and / or when the adolescent is still dependent on her family nucleus of origin or has not reached the legal age of majority (variable according to different countries of the world).
WHO establishes adolescence between the ages of 10 and 19. Most teenage pregnancies are considered unforeseen or unwanted pregnancies, caused by sexual intercourse without contraceptive methods.
One of the most complex problems currently facing human reproduction occurs precisely in this period: teenage pregnancy is considered a biomedical problem with a high risk of complications during pregnancy and childbirth, which implies an increase in the rates of maternal, perinatal and neonatal morbidity and mortality.
But the adverse consequences of teenage pregnancy are not only physical, but also have socio-cultural, psychological and economic implications, with high personal, educational, family and social costs.
This is especially true for younger girls (15-16 years old). Among the problems that usually occur in these young women, are:
- who follow an inadequate diet to their state
- they use the prenatal care service late or infrequently, which implies a greater difficulty in accepting reality, delay of the first visit, ignorance of the gestation time
- break the treatment
- they have attitudes of passivity, lack of support, depression ...
Given the increase in sexual activity in the adolescent stage, special attention deserves also the erroneous patterns of sexual behavior, which can trigger sexually transmitted infections and unwanted pregnancies, with all the problems associated with their appearance.
What teenage pregnancy is associated with
It is now widely recognized that teenage pregnancy and early motherhood is associated with school failure, deterioration of physical and mental health, social isolation, poverty and other related factors.
In this sense, not a few authors claim that teenage pregnancy should be considered as a high-risk pregnancy.
Risk factors The most influential in the probability of teenage pregnancy are poor information about sexuality and ignorance of contraceptive methods, together with a low level of education from parents.
The ignorance is aggravated because the issue of sexuality is still a taboo in paternal-filial relationships.
Another risk factor is teenage self-centeredness, which makes me think, in a kind of omnipotence, that the relationship between intercourse and pregnancy will not occur in your case.
Medical and social risks of teenage pregnancy
In teenage pregnancy there is an increase in medical risks, such as the likelihood of infection, premature rupture of membranes or premature births. Also pregnancy anemia, malnutrition, low birth weight, greater perinatal death ...
Between psychological problems in the mother there are postpartum depression, low self-esteem ... largely due to the truncation of her vital plans and the rejection of the couple or social. The father is usually a young adolescent who does not assume his paternal responsibility, causing a situation of emotional, economic and social abandonment in the mother and child.
We can also talk about another series of social disadvantages: low educational achievements, school dropout, unemployment, higher frequency of abuse and child abandonment ... Many times the adolescent has a very low level of schooling, so it is difficult to access a job worthy that allows you to meet your basic needs.
Because of all these risks involved teenage pregnancy, many health and child protection organizations in the world aim to reduce their incidence, thanks to training programs in which young people and their families are educated.
