Abstract
Introduction: The fertility pattern of Brazilian population has changed considerably in the last decades. Socioeconomic and cultural inequalities can influence the age of the first gestation, and the identification of these inequalities is a fundamental aspect of the monitoring and evaluation of women's health care policies.
 Objective: To analyze the age of women in their first gestation and the related factors in Brazil.
 Methods: A cross-sectional study using data from the National Health Survey 2013, analyzing women aged 18 to 49 years and their age in the first gestation, categorized by sociodemographic variables.
 Results: The North Region presented the highest percentage of pregnancy for the stratum of 10 to 14 years. The first pregnancy at the age of 15 to 19 years had the highest percentages for all regions, with a significant difference between the North and Southeast. The Southeast region obtained the highest percentage of the first pregnancy at the age of 30 to 39 years. The first pregnancy at the age of 15 to 19 years was significantly higher among the separated women; without instruction; and who live in rural areas. The first pregnancy of 10 to 14 was associated with the highest number of births that women will have throughout their lives, with a higher prevalence of 5 to 9 births.
 Conclusions: In Brazil, a large proportion of first pregnancies still occur in adolescence. The states of the northern region stand out with lower average ages in the first pregnancy, and this event is related to the worst socioeconomic conditions.
Highlights
The fertility pattern of the Brazilian population has changed considerably in recent decades
The Northern Region presented the highest percentage of pregnancy for the 10 to 14 years old stratum
The first pregnancy at the age of 15-19 years was significantly higher among separated women; without instruction; and living in rural areas
Summary
The fertility pattern of the Brazilian population has changed considerably in recent decades. The change in fertility behavior in Latin America, which began in the late twentieth century, encompasses a number of global factors that have conditioned the final size of offspring[1]. Among these changes, we highlight the social changes that women have been processing, from the break with the classic and exclusive social role assigned to them by motherhood, introducing themselves in the labor market and broadening their aspirations for citizenship. In 2004, the fertility rate in Brazil reached the level of population replacement, with an average of 2.1 children per woman[4,5,6]. A survey indicated that fertility in the country would be around 1.8 in the 2002-2006 period[7]
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