Consequences of Unwanted Pregnancy in Adolescents

Abstract

Introduction: Unwanted pregnancy affects the general state of adolescents and it constitutes a social problem, which, together with poverty, malnutrition, reproductive immaturity, violence and gender inequality compromise the health and well-being of adolescents and their children.
Objective: To exhibit the individual, family and social consequences of unwanted pregnancy in adolescents.
Methods: An observational study was carried out with a case-control design at Ayacucho Regional Hospital, Peru in 2019. Nine two adolescents were interviewed through a structured questionnaire to inquire about some of their characteristics, such as pregnancy, personal, family and social consequences. The adolescent with an unwanted pregnancy was considered as the unit of analysis. The characteristics of the groups were compared with the chi square test and the association was estimated using the odds ratio.
Results: The adolescents surveyed were between 14 and 17 years old. 72.83% mentioned that their pregnancy was unwanted. 70.1% of them had secondary level education, 79.1% were single, 43.3% had adolescent partners, and 43.3% were young couples. Comparisons were made between adolescents with unwanted pregnancy and adolescents with wanted pregnancy. There was no statistical difference (p> 0.05) between the characteristics of the pregnancy and its family consequences, but, on the other hand, a statistical difference (p<0.05) was found in the personal consequences (abandonment of the partner and relationship with the couple [OR 3.444 (1.157-10.258)]). Regarding the social consequences, statistical significance was found (p<0.05) regarding irresponsible motherhood [OR 4.650 (1.264-17.107)], irresponsible fatherhood [OR 6.845 (1.486-31.530)], forced marriage and hostile environment for the baby.
Conclusions: Adolescents with unwanted pregnancy face personal, individual, family and social consequences that affect their life plans and development opportunities.