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©The Author(s) 2025. Published by Baishideng Publishing Group Inc. All rights reserved.
Long-term consequences of unintended pregnancy: Impacts on early childhood growth and development in a multicenter study
Linda Yanti, Surtiningsih, Fauziah Hanum Nur Ardiyani, Ni Nyoman Ayu Desy Sekarini, Dwi Susanti, Mustaan, Murniati, Supriyadi, Agus Santosa
Linda Yanti, Surtiningsih, Fauziah Hanum Nur Ardiyani, Midwifery Study Program, Faculty of Health, Universitas Harapan Bangsa, Banyumas 53182, Central Java, Indonesia
Ni Nyoman Ayu Desy Sekarini, Midwifery Study Program, Faculty of Medicine, Universitas Pendidikan Ganesha, Singaraja 81116, Bali, Indonesia
Dwi Susanti, Department of Nursing, Batin Mangunang Regional General Hospital, Tanggamus 35384, Lampung, Indonesia
Mustaan, Department of Nursing, Lotim Medical Center Hospital, East Lombok 83611, West Nusa Tenggara, Indonesia
Murniati, Nursing Doctoral Program, Lincoln University College, Petaling Jaya 47301, Selangor, Malaysia
Murniati, Nursing Study Program, Universitas Harapan Bangsa, Banyumas 53182, Central Java, Indonesia
Supriyadi, Department of Biostatistics, Universitas Muhammadiyah Purwokerto, Banyumas 53181, Central Java, Indonesia
Agus Santosa, Department of Nursing, Universitas Muhammadiyah Purwokerto, Banyumas 53181, Central Java, Indonesia
Co-corresponding authors: Linda Yanti and Agus Santosa.
Author contributions: Yanti L contributed to study design, data collection, statistical analysis, data interpretation, manuscript preparation, literature search, and funding acquisition; Surtiningsih , Adriyani FHN, Sekarini NYAD, and Mustaan contributed to data collection; Murniati contributed to the literature search; Supriyadi contributed to the statistical analysis and data interpretation; Santosa A contributed to statistical analysis, data interpretation, literature search, and manuscript preparation. All authors read and approved the final manuscript. All authors take responsibility for the integrity of the data and the accuracy of the data analysis.
Institutional review board statement: This study was approved by the Health Research Ethics Committee of Universitas Muhammadiyah Purwokerto with the registration number KEPK/UMP/19/VI/2021. The research adhered to the ethical principles of respect for persons, beneficence, non-maleficence, and justice.
Informed consent statement: Subjects willing to participate were asked to sign an informed consent form.
Conflict-of-interest statement: The authors declare they have no financial or personal relationships with individuals or organizations that could inappropriately influence their work.
STROBE statement: The authors have read the STROBE Statement—checklist of items, and the manuscript was prepared and revised according to the STROBE Statement—checklist of items.
Data sharing statement: The datasets generated and analyzed during the current study are available from the corresponding author on reasonable request.
Open Access: This article is an open-access article that was selected by an in-house editor and fully peer-reviewed by external reviewers. It is distributed in accordance with the Creative Commons Attribution NonCommercial (CC BY-NC 4.0) license, which permits others to distribute, remix, adapt, build upon this work non-commercially, and license their derivative works on different terms, provided the original work is properly cited and the use is non-commercial. See:
https://creativecommons.org/Licenses/by-nc/4.0/ Corresponding author: Linda Yanti, Lecturer, Midwifery Study Program, Faculty of Health, Universitas Harapan Bangsa, Jl. Raden Patah No. 100, Kedunglongsir, Ledug, Kecamatan Kembaran, Banyumas 53182, Central Java, Indonesia.
lindayanti@uhb.ac.id
Received: March 21, 2025
Revised: April 17, 2025
Accepted: June 11, 2025
Published online: December 9, 2025
Processing time: 225 Days and 0.5 Hours
BACKGROUND
Unintended pregnancy occurs when an individual or couple conceives without planning or desire, which can potentially affect a child’s physical, mental, and social well-being. This can then lead to long-term socioeconomic challenges for families and communities. Although its impact on child growth and development is a pressing concern, research remains limited particularly in multicenter settings.
AIM
To examine the long-term consequences of unintended pregnancy on the critical years of early childhood growth and development.
METHODS
This analytical observational study employed a case-control design and was conducted in research centers across Indonesia, encompassing those located in Central Java, Lampung, Bali, and West Nusa Tenggara. A total of 700 children aged ≤ 5 years with histories of intended or unintended pregnancies participated. Data collection involved structured interviews and direct anthropometric and developmental assessments. Data analyses were conducted using multivariate statistics and partial least squares structural equation modeling.
RESULTS
Unintended pregnancy was found to have a statistically significant effect on both child growth (t = 8.178; P < 0.001) and child development (t = 25.688; P < 0.001). Key growth problems identified included underweight, undernutrition, abnormal head circumference, and stunting. Developmental challenges prominently associated with unintended pregnancy included behavioral and emotional disorders, autism spectrum disorder, attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder, social and motor skill deficits, as well as visual and hearing impairments.
CONCLUSION
Unintended pregnancy significantly affects child growth and development, underscoring the need for early intervention, quality prenatal care, and strengthened family planning policies.
Core Tip: Unintended pregnancy was found to significantly affect the resultant children’s growth and development. The children of unplanned pregnancies more frequently presented undernutrition, abnormal growth patterns, emotional disorders, and developmental delays. To mitigate such risks to the child’s growth and development, early intervention, comprehensive prenatal care, and improved access to family planning are essential.
