BMJ 2001;323:199-203 ( 28 July )

Papers

Changing patterns of teenage pregnancy: population based study of small areas

Alice McLeod, research associate. 

MRC Social and Public Health Sciences Unit, University of Glasgow, Glasgow G12 8RZ

a.mcleod{at}psychology.bbk.ac.uk

Objectives: To measure the impact of socioeconomic deprivation on rates of teenage pregnancy and the extent of local variation in pregnancy rates in Scotland, and to examine how both have changed over time.
Design: Population study using routine data from hospital records, aggregated for small areas.
Subjects: Female teenagers resident in Scotland who were treated for pregnancy in an NHS hospital in either 1981-5 (62 338 teenagers) or 1991-5 (48 514) and who were aged 13-19 at the time of conception.
Main outcome measures: Pregnancy rates per 1000 in age group and the proportions of pregnancies resulting in a maternity (live birth or stillbirth) in teenagers aged 13-15, 16-17, and 18-19.
Results: From the 1980s to the 1990s pregnancy rates increased differentially according to levels of local deprivation, as measured by the Carstairs index. Among teenagers aged less than 18 the annual pregnancy rate increased in the most deprived areas (from 7.0 to 12.5 pregnancies per 1000 13-15 year olds and from 67.6 to 84.6 per 1000 16-17 year olds), but there was no change, on average, among teenagers in the most affluent areas (3.8 per 1000 13-15 year olds and 28.9 per 1000 16-17 year olds). Among 18-19 year olds the pregnancy rate decreased in the most affluent areas (from 60.0 to 46.3 per 1000) and increased in the most deprived areas (from 112.4 to 116.0 per 1000). The amount of local variation explained by deprivation more than doubled from the 1980s to the 1990s. The proportion of pregnancies resulting in a maternity was positively associated with level of deprivation, but the effect remained similar over time.
Conclusion: From the 1980s to the 1990s the difference in rates of teenage pregnancy between more affluent and more deprived areas widened. This has implications for allocating resources to achieve government targets and points to important social processes behind the general increase in the number of teenage pregnancies in Scotland.


What is already known on this topic
Rates of teenage pregnancy are considerably higher in the United Kingdom than in other western European countries

In the United Kingdom rates of teenage pregnancy are known to be higher in areas of greater socioeconomic deprivation, although local variation may also reflect differential access to family planning services

What this study adds
From 1981-5 to 1991-5 rates of teenage pregnancy in Scotland increased more rapidly in areas of greater socioeconomic deprivation

In the 1990s socioeconomic deprivation explained more than 50% of local variation in rates of teenage pregnancy, more than double the amount explained by it in the 1980s



© BMJ 2001
Add to CiteULike CiteULike   Add to Complore Complore   Add to Connotea Connotea   Add to Del.icio.us Del.icio.us   Add to Digg Digg   Add to Reddit Reddit   Add to StumbleUpon StumbleUpon   Add to Technorati Technorati    What's this?

Relevant Article

Teenage pregnancy and social disadvantage: systematic review integrating controlled trials and qualitative studies
Angela Harden, Ginny Brunton, Adam Fletcher, and Ann Oakley
BMJ 2009 339: b4254. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

This article has been cited by other articles:

  • Harden, A., Brunton, G., Fletcher, A., Oakley, A. (2009). Teenage pregnancy and social disadvantage: systematic review integrating controlled trials and qualitative studies. BMJ 339: b4254-b4254 [Abstract] [Full text]  
  • Paranjothy, S, Broughton, H, Adappa, R, Fone, D (2009). Teenage pregnancy: who suffers?. Arch. Dis. Child. 94: 239-245 [Abstract] [Full text]  
  • Imamura, M., Tucker, J., Hannaford, P., da Silva, M. O., Astin, M., Wyness, L., Bloemenkamp, K. W. M., Jahn, A., Karro, H., Olsen, J., Temmerman, M., on behalf of the REPROSTAT 2 group, (2007). Factors associated with teenage pregnancy in the European Union countries: a systematic review. Eur J Public Health 17: 630-636 [Abstract] [Full text]  
  • Stammers, T. (2002). Teenage pregnancies are influenced by family structure. BMJ 324: 51-51 [Full text]  

Rapid Responses:

Read all Rapid Responses

Teenage pregnancies and family structure
Trevor Stammers
bmj.com, 29 Jul 2001 [Full text]
Changing patterns of teenage pregnancy
Anne mh Williams
bmj.com, 17 Sep 2001 [Full text]
Access jobs at BMJ Careers
Whats new online at Student BMJ