The Hispanic teen mother's origin of birth, use of prenatal care, and maternal and neonatal complications
Koshar, J.H.; Lee, K.A.; Goss, G.; Heilemann, M.S.; Stinson, J.
Journal of Pediatric Nursing 13(3): 151-157
1998
ISSN/ISBN: 0882-5963 PMID: 9640008 DOI: 10.1016/s0882-5963(98)80073-0Document Number: 279039
Currently comprising 9% of the US population, Hispanics are the fastest growing ethnic minority population in the country. 26% of California's population is Hispanic. The proportion of Hispanic youth is growing rapidly, with the Hispanic youth population projected to grow by 80% by 2030. The authors describe and compare differences in demographics, the use of prenatal care, and pregnancy, labor, postpartum, and neonatal complications among 129 pregnant Mexican-American adolescents who were either born in the US or in Mexico. The mean age of the 48 young women born in Mexico was 17.9 years, while the 81 born in the US were of mean age 17.2 years. More US teens were enrolled in school than were the teens born in Mexico, Mexico-born teens were more likely to be married, and the US-born teens reported a higher incidence of cigarette smoking. US-born and Mexico-born women had an average of 6.5 and 5.5 recorded prenatal visits, respectively. 25% of the teens, regardless of the country of origin, received either inadequate or no prenatal care. 14 prenatal complications, 17 labor complications, 7 postpartum complications, and 7 neonatal complications were identified.