Severe Adverse Maternal and Neonatal Outcomes in Adolescent Mother-Newborn Dyads: A Multicentre Study in Latin America.

Abstract

To compare the risk of severe adverse maternal outcomes (SMO) and neonatal outcomes (SNO) and analyse their maternal correlates in adolescent mother-newborn and young mother-newborn dyads in secondary and tertiary care users in Latin America. We performed a secondary analysis of the WHO Multicountry Survey on Maternal and Newborn Health database in 83 secondary and tertiary hospitals in seven countries in Latin America. We constructed a composite indicator of both SMO and SNO and estimated odds ratios (OR) comparing adolescent mothers (aged 12-19) with young mothers (aged 20-24). Our unit of analysis was the mother-newborn dyad. We found that the combination of SMO and SNO was three times more likely in adolescent mother as compared to young mother dyads (OR 3.56; 95% CI 1.67-7.59). SNO either alone or in combination with SMO were more likely in adolescents aged 12 to 16 than in young women (OR 1.27 and 4.87, respectively). Adolescent mothers and their newborns are at an increased risk of severe adverse outcomes during child birth and in the first week postpartum compared to young mother dyads, especially young adolescents. Focusing on the dyad as a whole may facilitate a step towards integrated care which maximizes the health benefits of both mother and newborn. Continued efforts are needed to improve health care and prevention initiatives directed towards adolescent women and their newborns in Latin America.