Abstract |
Recent studies on adolescent reproductive health in Kenya indicate high incidence of maternal mortality and morbidity. The medical service records available for 1,756 women aged 10 to 20 years in seven randomly selected health facilities were analysed to identify major reproductive health problems of adolescents in Kenya. Of the total sample, 31.5 per cent had high blood pressure, 29.2 per cent had prepartum and postpartum haemorrhage, 28.6 per cent experienced obstructed labour, 27.2 per cent had low birth weights and 14.2 per cent of births delivered to these mothers died. The incidence of these health problems varied by socio-economic and demographic characteristics of the mothers. Recommendations to address these problems include encouragement of female education, introduction of family life education in school curricula, increasing access to ante-natal services in villages, expansion of free and better equipped referral medical facilities, provision of family planning services and general socio-economic reforms in the rural areas |