Adolescent abortions: Situational analysis based on official statistics conducted in Kazakhstan during the last 5 years (2007-2011)

Abstract

In recent decades, adolescent pregnancy has become an important health issue in a great number of both developed and developing countries.We have investigated the official statistics database of the National Ministry of the Health (MoH) and their #13 Statutory Form (SF) and found the total number of abortions between 2007-2011 in Kazakhstan decreased by 28%. The total number of adolescent (≤15 and 15-18 years of age) abortions decreased by 52.7%. Contrary to this decrease in the total number of adolescent abortions, spontaneous abortions have increased from 23.2% to 45.0%. We found a tendency towards a decrease in the number of adolescents with the first pregnancy among adolescents 15-18 who had abortion between 2007-2011, from 51.3% to 35.8%. This clearly reflects the success of prevention activities among adolescents who have already had an abortion or birth. During the analyzed period, there were two lethal outcomes from abortions among girls 15-18 years old. There are some limitations in the assessment levels and dynamic changes of abortions among adolescents due to the division of age in the official statistical database.