A comparison between pregnancy outcome in women in 15 to 19 and 20 to 35 years age group

Background: Pregnancy is one of the most important periods of a woman’s life and is influenced by many different factors. For years, it was assumed that teenage pregnancy can cause poor pregnancy outcome. The purpose of this study was to compare some pregnancy complications between 2 groups of 15 to 19 and 20 to 35 year- old primigravida pregnant women    Methods: This was a cross- sectional study conducted on the data sheets of primigravida women who delivered their babies in a teaching hospital. A total of 3040 eligible women entered the study; of them, 280 (9.3%) were in the 15 to 19 years age group and 2756 in the 20 to 35 years age group. The 2 groups were compared for preeclampsia, PROM, preterm birth, SGA, placental abruption, and placenta previa. A logistic regression model was used for data analysis.     Results: The women of the 2 groups significantly differed in BMI and socioeconomic background. The rate of preeclampsia (p=0.008), PROM (p=0.002), and preterm delivery (p=0.001) were less in the 15 to 19 years age group. The rate of placental abruption, placenta previa, IUFD, and SGA was not significantly different between the 2 groups. After multivariate regression analysis, preeclampsia (adjusted odd ratio= 2.157; 95% CI= 1.38- 4.21) and preterm delivery (adjusted odd ratio= 2.443; 95% CI= 1.78- 5.13) were found to be higher in the 20 to 35 years group.    Conclusion: The risk of poor pregnancy outcome is not higher in teenage pregnancies compared to pregnancies in the 20 to 35 years age group if confounding factors, including socioeconomic factors, are carefully controlled.