Infant mortality and maternal age: Are young adolescents at the highest risk?

Infant mortality is a strong indicator of a nation's health, and, as such, is a primary area of public health concern. This study examines the age of the mother in relation to infant mortality using a nationally representative sample from the linked birth/infant death data set available through the National Center for Health Statistics. Younger mothers such as teens and adolescents have been shown to be more at risk for poor health outcomes such as preterm birth, low birth weight, or other perinatal complications. This study groups adolescence into early adolescence (10-14 years), middle adolescence (15-17 years), and late adolescence (18-19 years) in comparison to adulthood (20+ years). Proportional hazards event history analysis models were developed to compare the risk of infant mortality for each of the adolescent age categories, while controlling for several demographic, social, and health variables. Initial results indicate that while, overall, adolescent mothers had an infant mortality rate that was 66% higher than adult mothers, the proportional hazard analysis showed that only those in late adolescence had a significantly higher risk for infant mortality during the first year as compared to adult mothers. Not receiving prenatal care or having an infant born low birth weight significantly explained this risk. Results have implications for policies and programs targeting adolescents and suggest that focusing on those in late adolescence, particularly in accessing prenatal care and social support, may be the most beneficial for reducing risk of infant mortality.