European Journal of Biomedical and Pharmaceutical Sciences

FETAL AND MATERNAL OUTCOME OF PREGNANCIES IN WOMEN AT THE EXTREMES OF MATERNAL AGE - A REVIEW

Dr. Surayya Tahseen* and Dr. Fatima Tahniyath

ABSTRACT

Teenage pregnancy is a common public health and social problem with adverse medical consequences worldwide. WHO estimates that risk of death following pregnancy is twice as great for women between 15 to 19 years than those between 20 to 24 years.[1] The incidence of teenage pregnancy shows marked variation, in developed and developing countries .In India, incidence of teenage pregnancy varies from 3.2% to 18.6%.[2] According to the UNICEF 2011 report, the adolescent population in India is 20% of the total population i.e. almost 243 million. 27% of girls aged 15 to 19 years are married with a birth rate of 45 per 1000 girls in this age group.[3] Early Marraiges are a long established custom in India resulting in the high incidence of teenage pregnancy. The rate is higher in the rural than in urbanized areas. Despite the law, the problems of teenage marraiges and subsequent pregnancies are widely prevalent in India. The highest rate of teenage pregnancy in the world — 143 per 1,000 girls aged 15–19 years — is in sub-Saharan Africa.[4] In 2013, the teenage birth rate in the United States reached a historic low: 26.6 births per 1,000 women aged 15–19.[5]

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