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Physical abuse, social support, self-care, and pregnancy outcomes of older adolescents
1University of Akron College of Nursing, OH 44325-3701, USA.
Insights
Physical abuse during pregnancy is linked to lower infant birth weights in adolescents. Identifying abused mothers and their support systems can help predict high-risk infants for intervention.
Area of Science:
- Maternal and child health
- Nursing research
- Adolescent health
Background:
- Adolescent mothers face unique challenges during pregnancy.
- Understanding factors influencing pregnancy outcomes is crucial for this population.
- Physical abuse is a significant concern with potential adverse effects.
Purpose of the Study:
- To examine the relationship between physical abuse, social support, self-care, and pregnancy outcomes in older adolescent mothers.
- To identify predictors of infant birth weight and pregnancy complications.
Main Methods:
- Prospective cohort study utilizing Orem's Self-Care Deficit Theory.
- Data collected via prenatal interviews and medical record reviews from 139 participants.
- Key outcome measures included infant birth weight and pregnancy complications.
Main Results:
- 22% of adolescents reported physical abuse during pregnancy.
- Abused mothers had infants with significantly lower birth weights (3,144g vs. 3,310g).
- Abuse interacted with social support, self-care, and other factors to predict birth weight; abused adolescents reported more miscarriages and substance use.
Conclusions:
- Physical abuse negatively impacts adolescent pregnancy outcomes, particularly infant birth weight.
- Identifying abused adolescents and their social resources is vital for risk prediction.
- Early identification and intervention can improve outcomes for high-risk infants born to abused adolescent mothers.
Objective:
To evaluate the relationships between physical abuse, social support, self-care agency and practices, and pregnancy outcome for older adolescent mothers and infants.
Design:
Predictive-correlational design based on Orem's Self-Care Deficit Theory of Nursing and featuring a prospective cohort analysis. Prenatal interviews and medical record review after delivery were both used as data sources.
Setting:
Public prenatal clinics.
Participants:
Pregnant adolescents who were at least 18 years of age at the time of the prenatal interview and no more than 19 years of age at conception. Complete data were available for 139 participants.
Main Outcome Measures:
Infant birth weight, pregnancy complications.
Results:
Twenty-two percent (n = 30) of the adolescents in this sample reported that they experienced physical abuse during their pregnancy. Abused pregnant adolescents gave birth to infants with significantly lower birth weights (M = 3,144 g) than did adolescent mothers who were not abused (M = 3,310 g) (t = 1.99; p = .025). The interaction effect of abuse and the social support factors of shelter and family help, self-care agency, household size, and prenatal care were significant predictors of infant birth weight. Abused adolescents had significantly more previous miscarriages, substance use, and triage visits during their pregnancies.
Conclusions:
Identification of abused adolescents and their social resources during pregnancy may enhance prediction of infants at high risk and provide opportunities for intervention.