Outcomes of Adolescent Pregnancy

Abstract

Adolescent pregnancy is a global problem that occurs in many countries, especially in low and middle income countries, because teen pregnancy has serious consequences for mothers and babies. Physical and mental unpreparedness results in various health problems, causes of poverty and a risk of death. This study uses a five-step framework adapted from Arksey, H and O'Malley, L. Focus review is determined, search for articles with relevant databases (PubMed, Science Direct and EBSCO), search strategies are expanded by using keywords related to 'adolescent pregnancy' and 'outcomes', determine inclusion and exclusion criteria, extract data, and compile, summarize and report results. Ten articles selected according to inclusion criteria, two themes found in the results of this study are negative outcomes and positive outcomes of adolescent pregnancy. Adolescent pregnancy significantly provides negative outcomes for maternal and child health, psychological and socio-economic problems. However, a small proportion of adolescent pregnancies also provide positive outcomes for some pregnant adolescents, namely the presumption of changes to be more mature, readiness to be a mother, actively accepting pregnancy, and the emergence of hope and satisfaction with the pregnancy.