Adolescence and abortion in Greece: womenʹs profile and perceptions

Purpose To investigate the individual and social profile of the adolescents seeking abortion in Greece. Procedures Questionnaires were distributed from the obstetricians practicing in the capital and two major cities in Greece to adolescent pregnant women who were seeking for abortion and collected anonymously. Main findings From 150 consecutive pregnant adolescents, 38 refused to participate and from 112 who accepted to participate only 74 (66%) replied. Most of the respondents lived in a city (65%), were unmarried (73%), 62% had sex first time after the age of 15, and the educational status of their parents was rarely at higher degree (father: 20%, mother: 16%). Among them, 74% declared that they had received information on contraception (64% from friends, 47% from doctors, 36% from the media). Overall, withdrawal (49%) and male condom (28.5%) were the popular contraceptive precautions. Abortion was adolescentsʹ decision in 65%, while the partnerʹs influence in the case of a shared decision was as high as 73%. Most adolescents (91%) knew about the potential risks of abortion mainly by their doctor (87%) and socio-economical reasons (89%) were mostly claimed. Their parents were rarely aware about their pregnancy (28%) and decision for abortion (28%). In most cases it was the first abortion (78%) and adolescents declared that were aware about the Greek Churchʹs opposition (89%) and the existence of an abortion law (86%). Principal conclusion In Greece, the poor education on the issue of contraception still remains a major problem among teenagers contributing to the increased prevalence of undesired pregnancies and abortions.