Pregnancy under 14 is risky, experts say

Pregnancy of children under 14 is considered risky by specialists due to a series of possible complications for the mother and baby resulting from pregnancy in a body still in formation. Problems such as anemia, hypertension, preeclampsia, premature birth, low birth weight and malformations are common.

The Internal Affairs Office of the TJ-SC (Court of Justice of Santa Catarina) investigates the conduct of Judge Joana Ribeiro Zimmer, who induced an 11-year-old girl, pregnant after being a victim of rape, to give up legal abortion, as revealed by a report from the website The Intercept Brasil.

Data from 2010 from Datasus, a database that gathers information from the Ministry of Health, indicate that of the 225 deaths of pregnant women aged 10 to 20 years in Brazil, 23 of them were aged 10 to 14 years (10% of the cases, therefore).

“Deaths of pregnant women under the age of 15 are more frequent than the mortality of pregnant women over 40. There is also an immeasurable psychological risk in these cases”, says Albertina Duarte, a public health specialist specializing in gynecology and state coordinator of the Health Program of Adolescents, from the São Paulo State Health Department.

The stakes are high because a child’s body at this age is not ready to conceive a child. According to the doctor, it takes two to three years after the first period for the bone structure of the pelvis to consolidate. Therefore, cesarean section is indicated in this type of delivery.

Pregnancy in a body that is still at an early stage of formation can result in rupture of membranes at birth, increased bleeding in the first trimester and respiratory discomfort of the baby at birth, according to Flavia Bassanezzi, gynecologist and coordinator of the metropolitan regional police stations of Cremesp (Regional Council of Medicine in São Paulo).

“The risks of a pregnancy at this age are maternal and fetal”, he summarizes.

Ordinance of the Ministry of Health determines that pregnancies with more than 20 weeks, or a baby weighing more than 400 grams, even if the result of a rape, must be sent for prenatal care to assess the risks of death of the mother.

If the danger is found, a report from more than one doctor is needed to prove the need for an abortion. “There is abortion by medical indication, but these are cases in which it is necessary to analyze case by case”, says Bassanezzi.

In the case of a pregnant girl in Santa Catarina, the pregnancy is at 29 weeks, which, according to the Ministry of Health, recommends a childbirth, even if the court authorizes abortion.

Up to 12 weeks of gestation, abortions allowed due to sexual violence are performed through intrauterine aspiration. From 12 to 20 weeks, medication is prescribed to induce the expulsion of the fetus. From 20 weeks, a woman needs to go through labor.

In addition to the physical damage, the psychological aspect of a pregnancy at the age of 11 is highly worrying, highlights Albertina.

“It’s desperate to deliver a girl at that age. She looks at the child with a look of fear, she doesn’t even know what’s happening”, says the doctor about her experience in the outpatient clinic of the Pérola Byington hospital, a reference in violence care sexual.

The doctor reports that the girls already arrive at the hospital in labor, and almost always suffer rejection from the family in the postpartum period. “I have been following for over ten years the case of a girl who gave birth at age 14 and was rejected by her mother”, says Albertina.

UNDERSTAND THE DANGERS OF PREGNANCY IN CHILDREN

What are the risks of a pregnancy at 11 years old? The pregnant woman can develop anemia, hypertension, preeclampsia, premature birth. For the baby, there are greater chances of breathing problems and malformations.

why is it considered a risky pregnancy? From a physical point of view, a child at this age does not yet have the body prepared for a pregnancy. The bone structure of the pelvis, for example, takes two to three years after the first period to consolidate.

How is delivery performed in these cases? In most cases, cesarean section is more indicated by the disproportion between the baby’s head and the pelvis still in the development phase.
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