Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, National University Hospital, NUHS Tower Block, Singapore.
Eur J Obstet Gynecol Reprod Biol. 2012 Feb;160(2):219-22. doi: 10.1016/j.ejogrb.2011.11.017. Epub 2011 Dec 2.
Teenage abortions predispose women to adverse pregnancy outcomes in subsequent pregnancies such as anemia, stillbirths, preterm deliveries and low birth weight babies. We aim to profile the women presenting for abortions in our institution and determine risk factors for late presentation for abortions.
In this retrospective cohort study, all women who underwent an abortion at the National University Hospital, Singapore, from 2005 to 2009 were recruited. Data was obtained from a prepared questionnaire during the mandatory pre-abortion counseling sessions. Profiles of women aged <20 years were compared with those ≥ 20 years old using Chi-square test if the assumptions for Chi-square test were met; otherwise, Fisher's exact test was carried out. Logistic regression was used to investigate the risk factors for second trimester termination of pregnancy.
2109 women presented for induced abortions, of which 1998 had single abortion throughout the course of the study. The mean age of women with single abortion was 29.1 years (sd 7). In the group of women with single abortion, 182 (9.1%) were teenage abortions. In contrast to women ≥ 20 years of age, pregnant teenagers were more likely not to have used any contraception (51.1% vs. 25.2%) and more likely to present late for abortions (39.6% vs. 15.9%). Other risk factors for late presentation for abortions include Malay ethnicity, singlehood, nulliparity and lack of prior usage of contraception.
Teenagers are more likely to have no prior contraceptive usage and to present late for abortions. Lack of proper sexual education and awareness of contraceptive measures may have a major contributory factor to such a trend in teenage abortions. Recommendations have been made in order to curb this societal problem.
青少年堕胎会使女性在后续妊娠中出现不良妊娠结局，如贫血、死产、早产和低出生体重儿。我们旨在分析在我们机构进行堕胎的女性，并确定堕胎晚期就诊的危险因素。
在这项回顾性队列研究中，我们招募了 2005 年至 2009 年在新加坡国立大学医院进行堕胎的所有女性。数据来自强制性堕胎前咨询期间准备好的问卷。<20 岁的女性和≥20 岁的女性的特征通过卡方检验进行比较，如果卡方检验的假设成立；否则，进行 Fisher 精确检验。使用逻辑回归来调查妊娠中期终止妊娠的危险因素。
2109 名妇女接受了诱导性堕胎，其中 1998 名妇女在整个研究过程中只进行了一次堕胎。单次堕胎妇女的平均年龄为 29.1 岁（标准差 7）。在单次堕胎的妇女中，有 182 名（9.1%）是青少年堕胎。与≥20 岁的妇女相比，青少年怀孕者更有可能不使用任何避孕措施（51.1%比 25.2%），并且更有可能晚期堕胎（39.6%比 15.9%）。晚期堕胎的其他危险因素包括马来族裔、单身、未婚和缺乏先前使用避孕措施。
青少年更有可能没有先前的避孕措施，并且更有可能晚期堕胎。缺乏适当的性教育和对避孕措施的认识可能是青少年堕胎如此普遍的主要因素。为了遏制这一社会问题，已经提出了建议。
