The 21st-century adolescent mothers' profile and adolescent pregnancy reduction in Brazil

The aim of this study was to assess the changes in the sociodemographic profile and maternal healthcare associated with adolescent deliveries in Brazil in 2000, 2011, and 2022.

Cross-sectional study by search on the Live Births Data System. Analyzed variables from mothers aged 10-19 years in Brazil: age, education, ethnicity, marital status, prenatal consultations, mode of delivery, and the country's region.

In 2000, there were 750,537 adolescents' live births to adolescents in Brazil, and in 2022, there were 315,606 (58% reduction). There was a decrease in the number of married adolescent mothers, from 48 to 29.7% in 2011 and 25.5% in 2022. Regarding ethnicity, 231,369 (75%) pregnant adolescents in 2022 were Black and Brown, compared with 47.4% in 2000; the Indigenous adolescent deliveries have tripled (from 0.8 to 2.4%), with 7,526 births in 2022. Education improved substantially (30.3% in 2000 to 53.0% in 2011 and 80.6% in 2022) with at least 8 years of study. Adolescents with no prenatal care decreased from 6% in 2000 to 2% in 2022. There was an increase in cesarean births from 26.4 to 41.5%. Regionally, the age-specific fertility rate from 15 to 19 years in 2000 was higher in the North (111.7/1,000) and lower in the Southeast (71.4/1,000), in 2022, there was a decrease to 61.7/1,000 and 29.1/1,000, respectively.

There was a decrease in the number of married adolescent mothers and an increase in the education level of adolescent mothers. However, the rise in cesarean births and racial disparities, with Black and Brown adolescents comprising ¾ of pregnancies in 2022, highlights ongoing challenges for health policies.