Adolescent pregnancy and perinatal outcome.

Adolescent pregnancy is associated with adverse maternal and fetal effects. Potential risk factors involve early dating behavior, early initiation of smoking, alcohol and substance abuse, low academic interest, single-parent families and, above all, poverty. Girls younger than 18 years and not legally majors are psychologically and socially underdeveloped, presenting higher obstetrical risks. Maternal complications due to adolescent pregnancy include, among others: anemia; pregnancy induced hypertension; sexually transmitted diseases; and premature labor and delivery. The most common complications concerning the infant are related to: low birth weight, due either to prematurity or intrauterine growth restriction; infection; chemical dependence (due to maternal substance abuse); sudden infant death syndrome; and increased morbidity and mortality during the 1st year of age. In addition, education of teenage mothers on the importance of pre-and postnatal care can reduce the poor perinatal outcome of both mother and infant.