Trends in Teen Births in Mexico Spanning 25 Years: A Need for Regionally-directed Preventive Strategies

We aimed to explore national and regional trends in teen births in Mexico from 1992-2016, ranking the states with the highest rates in 2016.

A cross-sectional analysis was conducted and the data on the total number of live births to teenage mothers were analyzed. The age-standardized rates (ASRs) per 1,000 adolescent girls were obtained and the annual percent changes (APCs) with 95% confidence intervals (CIs) were calculated using the Poisson regression models.

The national ASRs during the study period dropped from 2.11-1.74 in girls aged 10-14 years and from 86.04-70.82 in adolescents aged 15-19 years. Higher APC rates were documented for teenage girls under 15 years of age (‒0.6, 95% CI:-1.0, -0.3), when compared with older girls (-0.3, 95% CI:-0.6, -0.04). Heterogeneous APCs were observed in the stratified analysis and the overall declines were higher from 2011-2016. States with significantly increasing trends in teen births were also documented. The highest ASRs (per 1,000 girls aged 10-19 years) in 2016 were registered in the states of Coahuila de Zaragoza (49.45), Chiapas (46.24), and Guerrero (44.94).

Teen birth rates decreased over the period of time analyzed. However, that decline has not been monotonic or homogeneous across Mexico, and recent (2011-2016) increasing rates were observed in some states in girls aged 14 years and younger. Teenage parenthood can negatively affect multiple dimensions of health, and therefore, regionally directed efforts focusing on its reduction must be strengthened.