PREGNANCY, ABORTION, AND BIRTH-RATES AMONG US ADOLESCENTS - 1980, 1985, AND 1990

Objective.-To analyze pregnancy, abortion, and birth rates among US ad olescent girls in 1980, 1985, and 1990. Design.-Retrospective analysis of trends in data on pregnancies, abortions, and births. Population.- US adolescent girls aged 13 to 19 years. Main Outcome Measures.-Pregna ncy, abortion, and birth rates (with and without adjustment for sexual experience) among teenaged girls aged 15 to 19 years and girls under 15 years. Results.-Although pregnancy rates among all teenaged girls 1 5 to 19 years old remained fairly stable from 1980 to 1985, they incre ased by 9% during the last half of the decade, totaling 95.9 pregnanci es per 1000 teenaged girls 15 to 19 years old by 1990. Because rates o f sexual experience increased even faster, pregnancy rates among sexua lly experienced teens aged 15 to 19 actually declined between 1980 and 1990 by approximately 8%. Abortion rates among these teens remained s table during the 1980s, with 35.8 and 36.0 abortions per 1000 in 1980 and 1990, respectively. As with overall pregnancy rates, abortion rate s among these sexually experienced teenaged girls declined during the 1980s. Between 1980 and 1985, birth rates among teenaged girls aged 15 to 19 years declined by 4%, but they increased by 18% during the latt er half of the decade, totaling 59.9 births per 1000 in 1980. Among th ese sexually experienced teenagers, birth rates also declined between 1980 and 1985 and then increased over the next 5 years. In 1990, pregn ancies and abortions among girls younger than 15 years accounted for o nly 3% of all adolescent pregnancies and abortions. However, the numbe r of births among these younger adolescents increased by 15% over the decade. In that age group, trends in pregnancy, abortion, and birth ra tes over the decade were similar to those for older teens, However, du ring the late 1980s, the abortion rate declined and the pregnancy rate remained stable, resulting in a 26% increase in the birth rate. Concl usions.-Despite efforts to reduce adolescent pregnancy in the United S tates, pregnancy and birth rates for that group continue to be the hig hest among developed countries. Considering that 95% of adolescent pre gnancies are unintended, increased efforts to prevent these pregnancie s are warranted.