title: Trends in Timing of Pregnancy Awareness Among US Women.
abstract: Objectives Early pregnancy detection is important for improving pregnancy outcomes as the first trimester is a critical window of fetal development; however, there has been no description of trends in timing of pregnancy awareness among US women. Methods We examined data from the 1995, 2002, 2006-2010 and 2011-2013 National Survey of Family Growth on self-reported timing of pregnancy awareness among women aged 15-44 years who reported at least one pregnancy in the 4 or 5 years prior to interview that did not result in induced abortion or adoption (n = 17, 406). We examined the associations between maternal characteristics and late pregnancy awareness (≥7 weeks' gestation) using adjusted prevalence ratios from logistic regression models. Gestational age at time of pregnancy awareness (continuous) was regressed over year of pregnancy conception (1990-2012) in a linear model. Results Among all pregnancies reported, gestational age at time of pregnancy awareness was 5.5 weeks (standard error = 0.04) and the prevalence of late pregnancy awareness was 23 % (standard error = 1 %). Late pregnancy awareness decreased with maternal age, was more prevalent among non-Hispanic black and Hispanic women compared to non-Hispanic white women, and for unintended pregnancies versus those that were intended (p < 0.01). Mean time of pregnancy awareness did not change linearly over a 23-year time period after adjustment for maternal age at the time of conception (p < 0.16). Conclusions for Practice On average, timing of pregnancy awareness did not change linearly during 1990-2012 among US women and occurs later among certain groups of women who are at higher risk of adverse birth outcomes.
authors.affiliation: Division of Vital Statistics, National Center for Health Statistics, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Reproductive Statistics Branch, Hyattsville, MD, 20782, USA. ambranum@cdc.gov.
authors.forename: Amy M
authors.initials: AM
authors.lastname: Branum
authors.affiliation: National Center for Health Statistics, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Office of Analysis and Epidemiology, Infant, Child, and Women's Health Statistics Branch, Hyattsville, MD, 20782, USA.
authors.forename: Katherine A
authors.initials: KA
authors.lastname: Ahrens
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000367:Age Factors; D042241:Early Diagnosis; D005260:Female; D005865:Gestational Age; D006801:Humans; D008423:Maternal Age; D009035:Mothers / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D011159:Population Surveillance; D011247:Pregnancy / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D013997:Time Factors; D014481:United States; D055815:Young Adult
keywords: Gestational age; National Survey of Family Growth; Pregnancy