title: Is adolescent pregnancy a risk factor for low birth weight?
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  The objective of this study was to evaluate whether adolescent pregnancy is a risk factor for low birth weight (LBW) babies.
  
  
  METHODS
  This was a cross-sectional study of mothers and their newborns from a birth cohort in Aracaju, Northeastern Brazil. Data were collected consecutively from March to July 2005. Information collected included socioeconomic, biological and reproductive aspects of the mothers, using a standardized questionnaire. The impact of early pregnancy on birth weight was evaluated by multiple logistic regression.
  
  
  RESULTS
  We studied 4,746 pairs of mothers and their babies. Of these, 20.6% were adolescents (< 20 years of age). Adolescent mothers had worse socioeconomic and reproductive conditions and perinatal outcomes when compared to other age groups. Having no prenatal care and smoking during pregnancy were the risk factors associated with low birth weight. Adolescent pregnancy, when linked to marital status "without partner", was associated with an increased proportion of low birth weight babies.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Adolescence was a risk factor for LBW only for mothers without partners. Smoking during pregnancy and lack of prenatal care were considered to be independent risk factors for LBW.
authors.affiliation: Departamento de Enfermagem, Universidade Federal de Sergipe, Aracaju, SE, Brasil. alziranery@uol.com.br
authors.forename: Alzira Maria d'Avila Nery
authors.initials: AM
authors.lastname: Guimarães
authors.forename: Heloísa
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Bettiol
authors.forename: Luiz de
authors.initials: Ld
authors.lastname: Souza
authors.forename: Ricardo Q
authors.initials: RQ
authors.lastname: Gurgel
authors.forename: Maria Luiza Dória
authors.initials: ML
authors.lastname: Almeida
authors.forename: Eleonora Ramos de Oliveira
authors.initials: ER
authors.lastname: Ribeiro
authors.forename: Marcelo Z
authors.initials: MZ
authors.lastname: Goldaniv
authors.forename: Marco Antônio
authors.initials: MA
authors.lastname: Barbieri
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D001938:Brazil; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007230:Infant, Low Birth Weight; D007231:Infant, Newborn; D008423:Maternal Age; D011247:Pregnancy; D011253:Pregnancy in Adolescence; D012307:Risk Factors; D012959:Socioeconomic Factors; D055815:Young Adult