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Prematurity and Multidimensional Risk Patterns in Adolescent and Adult Pregnancies: A Principal Component Analysis in
Florin Tovirnac1, Alina Mihaela Calin1, Catalin Plesea-Condratovici2
1Clinic Surgical Department, Dunarea de Jos University of Galati, 800008 Galati, Romania.
Children (Basel, Switzerland)
|December 30, 2025
Summary
Risk profiles for preterm birth are complex and differ between adolescent and adult pregnancies. Understanding these multidimensional patterns can inform age-specific prevention strategies for better maternal and infant outcomes.
Area of Science:
- Obstetrics and Gynecology
- Perinatal Medicine
- Public Health
Background:
- Preterm birth is a leading cause of neonatal morbidity and mortality.
- Risk factors involve complex interactions between maternal, fetal, placental, and behavioral elements.
- Eastern European cohort data were analyzed to explore risk patterns.
Purpose of the Study:
- To examine latent multidimensional risk patterns in adolescent and adult pregnancies.
- To identify distinct risk profiles associated with preterm birth across different maternal age groups.
- To provide a data-driven framework for age-specific preventive strategies.
Main Methods:
- Retrospective observational study of non-COVID pregnancies (2020-2021) in Brăila, Romania.
- Analysis of three cohorts: adolescent preterm (n=54), adult preterm (n=231), and adult term (n=3354).
- Principal Component Analysis (PCA) with Varimax rotation on maternal, fetal, placental, and behavioral indicators.
Main Results:
- PCA identified three latent dimensions explaining 66-72% of variance across all groups.
- Adolescent preterm pregnancies showed clustering of maternal complications, behaviors, and obstetric-placental indicators.
- Adult preterm pregnancies revealed distinct placental-obstetric and behavioral dimensions; adult term pregnancies highlighted behavioral/socio-environmental factors.
Conclusions:
- Prematurity risk profiles are multidimensional and vary significantly by maternal age and pregnancy outcome.
- Exploratory PCA dimensions offer a framework for understanding risk clustering in diverse maternal populations.
- Further validation in prospective, multicenter studies is needed for clinical application.
Keywords:
adolescent pregnancyclinical risk stratificationpregnancy outcomespreterm birthprincipal component analysisMore Related Videos
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