Abstract

FLORES-VALENCIA, Margarita E.; NAVA-CHAPA, Graciela  and  ARENAS-MONREAL, Luz. Adolescent pregnancy in Mexico: a public health issue. Rev. salud pública [online]. 2017, vol.19, n.3, pp.374-378. ISSN 0124-0064.  https://doi.org/10.15446/rsap.v19n3.43903.

Adolescent pregnancy is considered a public health issue by the World Health Organization (WHO) because of the biopsychosocial impact that it has on the health of the mother and the child. Complications during pregnancy and childbirth are the leading cause of death for adolescents in most countries. The lack of health guidance and education is a determining factor for the high number of preterm pregnancies. This paper reviews and analyzes this public health issue considering demographic and reproductive aspects, the institutional programs that have been implemented for its prevention, and its characteristics, risk factors, causes and consequences. Furthermore, it presents a description of the dimensions of adolescent pregnancy, in other words, cultural, psychological, social and educational aspects. Regarding education, different interventions focused on increasing knowledge in the prevention of pregnancy at this age and field of application, and that have been applied to adolescents, are reviewed.

Keywords : Pregnancy; adolescent; health education; knowledge; (source: MeSH, NLM).

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