Directorate of Postgraduate Studies

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Browsing Directorate of Postgraduate Studies by Subject "Adolescent pregnancies"

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    Obstetric outcomes of adolescent pregnancies at Mwananyamala, Temeke, Amana and Sinza Hospitals, Dar es Salaam Tanzania from November 2017 to April 2018.
    (Hubert Kairuki Memorial University, 2018) Athumani, Jamila S.
    Background: Adolescent pregnancy is defined as a pregnancy occurring in girls aged 10 to 19 years. Adolescent pregnancy is a significant public health issue as it has been linked to an increased risk of obstetric complications, adverse neonatal outcomes and socioeconomic consequences. Few studies have been conducted in Tanzania concerning the outcome of adolescent pregnancy but most of them are very old and their information does not reflect the present situation. Aim: To determine the prevalence, causes and obstetric outcomes of adolescent pregnancy Methodology: This was a descriptive cross- sectional study which was conducted in the labour wards of Mwananyamala, Temeke, Amana and Sinza hospitals and it involved 500 adolescent pregnant mothers aged 15-19 years who delivered in the above-mentioned hospitals during the study period from November, 2017 to April, 2018 who carried singleton pregnancies. The study participants were consecutively recruited on arrival to labour wards and then followed up until the time of discharge from the hospitals. The structured questionnaires were used to collect the relevant socio-demographic, medical and obstetric characteristics. The collected data was analyzed using SPSS version 22.0. Results: A total of 7868 deliveries were conducted in all 4 hospitals during the study period, out of which 1185 were adolescent mothers. This gives the overall prevalence of adolescent pregnancy of 15.06%. The mean age of adolescent pregnancy was found to be 17.8 ± 1.25 years. The adolescent pregnant mothers in this study were found to be unmarried (56.2%) with low level of education (56.8%), unemployed (70.2%) with low socioeconomic status (57.4%). The most significant maternal obstetric outcomes observed in our study included perineal tear (49.4%) and preterm delivery (7.7%). Fifty six (11.2%) of neonates born by adolescent mothers had low birth weight. Prematurity (42.1%), birth asphyxia (31.6%) and stillbirth (85.7%) were the most common neonatal outcomes. Total number of perinatal deaths was 21 babies (21/500, 4.2%) making perinatal mortality rate of 42 per 1000 live births. Conclusion: The prevalence of adolescent pregnancy observed in this study was relatively similar to the ones found in other studies. Adolescent pregnant mothers were found to be unmarried, less educated, unemployed and of low socioeconomic status. Adolescent pregnancy is associated with significant maternal obstetric outcomes like perineal tear, preterm delivery, birth asphyxia and stillbirths.