Abstract
This study was conducted to evaluate the obstetric performance of teenage women in India. In total, 13,210 women were included in the study, of whom 840 were teenagers (<19 years) and 12,370 were > 20 years. Antepartum, intrapartum and postpartum events were recorded and comparative analysis was done. We found that teenage women were at a significantly higher risk for development of severe anaemia (relative risk [RR] 1.61, P value < 0.02), eclampsia (RR 1.95, P value < 0.05), preterm labour (RR 1.25, P value < 0.001), intrauterine growth retardation (RR 2.29, P value < 0.001) and low birth weight (RR 1.24, P value < 0.001). Assisted delivery (11.78% versus 2.23%, P value < 0.001) was significantly more common and caesarean delivery (9.64% versus 17.18%, P value < 0.001) was significantly less common in teenagers. Moderate anaemia, mild pregnancy-induced hypertension, preeclampsia, premature rupture of membranes, antepartum haemorrhage and post dates were all significantly higher in ≥ 20 years group. To conclude, we found that teenage women are a high-risk group, which is aggravated by social and cultural factors. Special attention is required to educate these women for more positive outcomes.
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