Is pregnancy planning associated with background characteristics and pregnancy-planning behavior?
(2016) In Acta Obstetricia et Gynecologica Scandinavica 95(2). p.182-189- Abstract (Swedish)
- Introduction Prevalence of planned pregnancies varies between countries but is often measured in a dichotomous manner. The aim of this study was to investigate to what level pregnant women had planned their pregnancies and whether pregnancy planning was associated with background characteristics and pregnancy-planning behavior. Material and methods A cross-sectional study that utilized the baseline measurements from the Swedish Pregnancy Planning study. Pregnant women (n = 3390) recruited at antenatal clinics answered a questionnaire. Data were analyzed with multinomial logistic regression, Kruskal-Wallis H and chi-squared tests. Results Three of four pregnancies were very or fairly planned and 12% fairly or very unplanned. Of women with... (More)
- Introduction Prevalence of planned pregnancies varies between countries but is often measured in a dichotomous manner. The aim of this study was to investigate to what level pregnant women had planned their pregnancies and whether pregnancy planning was associated with background characteristics and pregnancy-planning behavior. Material and methods A cross-sectional study that utilized the baseline measurements from the Swedish Pregnancy Planning study. Pregnant women (n = 3390) recruited at antenatal clinics answered a questionnaire. Data were analyzed with multinomial logistic regression, Kruskal-Wallis H and chi-squared tests. Results Three of four pregnancies were very or fairly planned and 12% fairly or very unplanned. Of women with very unplanned pregnancies, 32% had considered an induced abortion. Women with planned pregnancies were more likely to have a higher level of education, higher household income, to be currently working (≥50%) and to have longer relationships than women with unplanned pregnancies. The level of pregnancy planning was associated with planning behavior, such as information-seeking and intake of folic acid, but without a reduction in alcohol consumption. One-third of all women took folic acid 1 month prior to conception, 17% used tobacco daily and 11% used alcohol weekly 3 months before conception. Conclusions A majority rated their pregnancy as very or fairly planned, with socio-economic factors as explanatory variables. The level of pregnancy planning should be queried routinely to enable individualized counseling, especially for women with unplanned pregnancies. Preconception recommendations need to be established and communicated to the public to increase health promoting planning behavior. © 2015 The Authors Acta Obstetricia et Gynecologica Scandinavica published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd on behalf of Nordic Federation of Societies of Obstetrics and Gynecology (NFOG). (Less)
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https://lup.lub.lu.se/record/ec9dc775-431d-4d7a-af8b-3ca818b75ee4
- author
- Stern, Jenny ; Salih Joelsson, Lana ; Tydén, Tanja ; Berglund, Anna ; Ekstrand, Maria LU ; Hegaard, Hanne LU ; Aarts, Clara ; Rosenblad, Andreas ; Larsson, Margareta and Kristiansson, Per
- publishing date
- 2016
- type
- Contribution to journal
- publication status
- published
- subject
- keywords
- folic acid, health behavior, Planned pregnancy, preconception care, unplanned pregnancy, alcohol, adult, alcohol consumption, Article, conception, controlled study, cross-sectional study, educational status, family planning, female, health promotion, help seeking behavior, household, human, human experiment, income, Kruskal Wallis test, maternal behavior, measurement, medical history, multicenter study, multivariate logistic regression analysis, patient counseling, pregnancy, pregnancy planning, pregnancy planning behavior, pregnant woman, priority journal, questionnaire, social status, Sweden, univariate analysis, vitamin supplementation, psychology, statistics and numerical data, Adult, Cross-Sectional Studies, Family Planning Services, Female, Humans, Pregnancy, Pregnant Women, Surveys and Questionnaires
- in
- Acta Obstetricia et Gynecologica Scandinavica
- volume
- 95
- issue
- 2
- pages
- 182 - 189
- publisher
- Wiley-Blackwell
- external identifiers
-
- scopus:84954382562
- ISSN
- 1600-0412
- DOI
- 10.1111/aogs.12816
- language
- English
- LU publication?
- no
- additional info
- Export Date: 05 December 2025; Cited By: 46
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- ec9dc775-431d-4d7a-af8b-3ca818b75ee4
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- date last changed
- 2025-12-06 04:00:38
@article{ec9dc775-431d-4d7a-af8b-3ca818b75ee4,
abstract = {{Introduction Prevalence of planned pregnancies varies between countries but is often measured in a dichotomous manner. The aim of this study was to investigate to what level pregnant women had planned their pregnancies and whether pregnancy planning was associated with background characteristics and pregnancy-planning behavior. Material and methods A cross-sectional study that utilized the baseline measurements from the Swedish Pregnancy Planning study. Pregnant women (n = 3390) recruited at antenatal clinics answered a questionnaire. Data were analyzed with multinomial logistic regression, Kruskal-Wallis H and chi-squared tests. Results Three of four pregnancies were very or fairly planned and 12% fairly or very unplanned. Of women with very unplanned pregnancies, 32% had considered an induced abortion. Women with planned pregnancies were more likely to have a higher level of education, higher household income, to be currently working (≥50%) and to have longer relationships than women with unplanned pregnancies. The level of pregnancy planning was associated with planning behavior, such as information-seeking and intake of folic acid, but without a reduction in alcohol consumption. One-third of all women took folic acid 1 month prior to conception, 17% used tobacco daily and 11% used alcohol weekly 3 months before conception. Conclusions A majority rated their pregnancy as very or fairly planned, with socio-economic factors as explanatory variables. The level of pregnancy planning should be queried routinely to enable individualized counseling, especially for women with unplanned pregnancies. Preconception recommendations need to be established and communicated to the public to increase health promoting planning behavior. © 2015 The Authors Acta Obstetricia et Gynecologica Scandinavica published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd on behalf of Nordic Federation of Societies of Obstetrics and Gynecology (NFOG).}},
author = {{Stern, Jenny and Salih Joelsson, Lana and Tydén, Tanja and Berglund, Anna and Ekstrand, Maria and Hegaard, Hanne and Aarts, Clara and Rosenblad, Andreas and Larsson, Margareta and Kristiansson, Per}},
issn = {{1600-0412}},
keywords = {{folic acid; health behavior; Planned pregnancy; preconception care; unplanned pregnancy; alcohol; adult; alcohol consumption; Article; conception; controlled study; cross-sectional study; educational status; family planning; female; health promotion; help seeking behavior; household; human; human experiment; income; Kruskal Wallis test; maternal behavior; measurement; medical history; multicenter study; multivariate logistic regression analysis; patient counseling; pregnancy; pregnancy planning; pregnancy planning behavior; pregnant woman; priority journal; questionnaire; social status; Sweden; univariate analysis; vitamin supplementation; psychology; statistics and numerical data; Adult; Cross-Sectional Studies; Family Planning Services; Female; Humans; Pregnancy; Pregnant Women; Surveys and Questionnaires}},
language = {{eng}},
number = {{2}},
pages = {{182--189}},
publisher = {{Wiley-Blackwell}},
series = {{Acta Obstetricia et Gynecologica Scandinavica}},
title = {{Is pregnancy planning associated with background characteristics and pregnancy-planning behavior?}},
url = {{http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/aogs.12816}},
doi = {{10.1111/aogs.12816}},
volume = {{95}},
year = {{2016}},
}