Assessing the prevalence and determinants of adolescents' unintended pregnancy and induced abortion in Owerri, Nigeria

Abstract

This study examines the prevalence and determinants of adolescents' unintended pregnancy and induced abortion in Owerri, Nigeria. A pre-coded questionnaire was used to obtain information from 540 female adolescents of mean age 15.8 years. In addition, four FGDs were held with female adolescents in selected localities and in-depth interviews held with fifteen health-care service providers. Almost all the adolescents (99.8%) were Christians, with 70.3% being Catholics and 68.2% living with their parents. Over half (57.2%) of the adolescents had had sex. Contraceptives were rarely used owing to deep-seated cultural values. The data show that 31.6% of those who had ever had sex had an unintended pregnancy. Of these, 78.9% had recurrent pregnancies and 20.2% had an abortion. Of the latter, 41.8% had a recurrent abortion and 72.7% a post-abortion problem, for which 70.2% never sought treatment, increasing the risk of infertility in later life. The abortion seekers mostly went to patent medicine operators. A more acceptable and cost-effective contraceptive campaign involving use of local vernacular and traditional/local opinion leaders should be explored.