Adolescent pregnancy in Israel: A methodology for rate estimation and analysis of characteristics and trends

Problem: Teenage pregnancies are frequently unplanned, the young pregnant woman being often unmarried. These pregnancies occasionally end in induced abortion. Teenage pregnancy, especially when unintended, is correlated with negative effects for the child and the mother. Despite the need to reduce the magnitude of this phenomenon, there is no reliable database on teenage pregnancy. Such a database could help define populations at risk, and could help in designing prevention programs. Birth rates, fetal deaths, and induced abortion are reported, but there is no uniformity or merging of the data. Objectives: The aims of the paper are to present a methodology for the estimation of pregnancy rates and to use it for the analysis of characteristics and trends in adolescent pregnancies in Israel. Methods: The pregnancy rate was calculated as the sum of three outcomes: live birth, induced abortion, and fetal loss, at all stages of pregnancy. Results: Based on these computations, the teenage pregnancy rate in Israel was estimated as 32 per 1,000 adolescent girls. This rate was three times higher among Moslems as compared to Jews. From 1988 through 1998, the rate decreased by 12%. The pregnancy rate in Israel is similar to the rate of most Western-European countries, and is three times lower than the US rate. Conclusion: There is a need to improve the means for collecting the data on which the computations are based, to build an algorithm specifically adapted to Israel, and to publish detailed pregnancy rates on a regular basis.