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Adolescent abortions: Situational 

analysis based on official statistics 

conducted in Kazakhstan during 

the last 5 years (2007-2011) 

 

Gulya Nazarovna Alimbayeva1, 

Gulzhan Narimbayevna 

Chimbayeva2 
 

1Kazakh National Medical University, 
Almaty, Kazakhstan; 2Hospital of the 
President Administration, Astana, 
Kazakhstan 

 

 

Vol. 2, No. 2 (2013)   |   ISSN 2166-7403 (Online)    

DOI 10.5195/cajgh.2013.38   |   http://cajgh.pitt.edu 

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ALIMBAYEVA 

 

 

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 United States License. 

 

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Central Asian Journal of Global Health 

Volume 2, No. 2 (2013)  |  ISSN  2166-7403  (online)  |  DOI 10.5195/cajgh.2013.38  |  http://cajgh.pitt.edu 

  

 

 

Abstract 

In recent decades, adolescent pregnancy has become an important health issue in a great number of both developed and 

developing countries.We have investigated the official statistics database of the National Ministry of the Health (MoH) and their 

#13 Statutory Form (SF) and found the total number of abortions between 2007-2011 in Kazakhstan decreased by 28%. The total 

number of adolescent (up to 15 plus 15-18 years old) abortions decreased by 52.7%. Contrary to this decrease in the total number 

of adolescent abortions, spontaneous abortions have increased from 23.2% to 45.0%,. We found a tendency towards a decrease in 

the number of adolescents with the first pregnancy among adolescents 15-18 who had abortion between 2007-2011, from 51.3% 

to 35.8%. This clearly reflects the success of prevention activities among adolescents who have already had an abortion or child 

labor. During the analyzed period, there were two lethal outcomes from abortionsamong girls15-18 years old. There are some 

limitations in the assessment levels and dynamic changes of abortions among adolescents due to the division of age in the official 

statistical database. 

Keywords: abortion, adolescent pregnancies, lethal outcomes, reproductive age, statistics database 

 

Adolescent abortions: Situational 

analysis based on official statistics 

conducted in Kazakhstan during the 

last 5 years (2007-2011) 

Gulya Nazarovna Alimbayeva1, 

Gulzhan Narimbayevna Chimbayeva2 
 

1Kazakh National Medical University, Almaty, 
Kazakhstan; 2Hospital of the President 
Administration, Astana, Kazakhstan 

Short Reports 

Introduction 

The World Health Organization’s (WHO) 

definition of health, "Health is a state of complete 

physical, mental and social well-being and not merely 

the absence of disease or infirmity" was adopted on 7 

April 1948 and has not been amended.¹ But what is an 

unwanted pregnancy and abortion? Is it health or 

illness?  

In recent decades, adolescent (<20 years of 

age) pregnancyhas become an important health issue in 

a number of developed and developing countries.  

However, pregnancy during adolescence is by no means 

a new phenomenon. In many countries, large numbers 

of adolescent pregnancies and births are reported. Two 

decisive aspects of the adolescent period have strongly 

influenced this increase. The first is the decreasing age 

at menarche and the second is the increasing age of 

marriage. This widening gap is the basis of unwanted 

pregnancies during young ages.  

Why is the issue of adolescent pregnancy so 

difficult to solve?  If we investigate the definitions that 

cover this specific life period, we can determine that:  

a) According to the UN Convention on the Rights 

of the Children,² a child is an individual below the 

age of 18.  

b) Adolesence is defined by WHO³ as individuals 

of 10-19. The WHO & Adolescent Health Care 

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CENTRAL ASIAN JOURNAL OF GLOBAL HEALTH 

 

 

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 United States License. 

 

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of its D-Scribe Digital Publishing Program, and is cosponsored by the University of Pittsburgh Press. 

 

Central Asian Journal of Global Health 

Volume 2, No. 2 (2013)  |  ISSN  2166-7403  (online)  |  DOI 10.5195/cajgh.2013.38  |  http://cajgh.pitt.edu 

 

 

divides adolescence into three psychosocial 

developmental phases: 

1. Early adolescence: age of 10-13 years old 

2. Middle adolescence: age of 14-16 years 

old 

3. Late adolescence: age of 17-19 years old 

c) Reproductive age for females: 15-44 years old.
4
 

Pregnancy is a great burden for adolescents. A 

female in this age range may be simultaneously treated 

as a child, an adolescent, and a reproductive female. We 

can determine the causes of the increase in adolescent 

pregnancies if we consider their social backgrounds and 

that pregnancies may happen in children with 

reproductive potential.  

 

Methods  

To gain an understanding of the issue of 

adolescent pregnancies in Kazakhstan during the period 

of 2007-2011, we have investigated the official statistics 

database of the National Ministry of the Health (MoH) 

and their # 13 Statutory Form (SF). We first 

investigatedabortion. The # 13 (SF) has long been in use 

in Kazakhstan.
5
 There are some limitations in the 

assessment levels and dynamical changes of the 

abortions among adolescents because databases are 

divided into several columns (e.g. less than 15 years of 

age, ages 15-18 and 19 and above).  

 

Results 

There was a 28% reduction in the number of 

abortions between 2007 and 2011 in Kazakhstan. On the 

other hand, the total number of adolescent (up to 15 plus 

15-18 years old) abortions decreased by 52.7%. This 

happened as the result of prevention activities of 

medical specialists and social programs. 

Figure 1 shows the dynamics of reduction for 

the specific weight of adolescent abortions among the 

total number of abortions. This figure illustrates a 

decreasing trend from 4.5% to 3.0%. Contrary to the 

specific weight of adolescent abortions, the figure also 

indicates that abortions in adolescents under age 15 

remains constant, with slight increase from 1.4%-1.6%.  

 

Figure 1: Dynamic changes of the specific weight of 

adolescent abortions compared to total amount of 

abortions during the period 2007-2011 

 

Figure 2 illustrates a decreasing trend in the 

specific number of first pregnancy abortions among 

adolescents ages 15-18, from 51.3% to 35.8%. This fact 

clearly reflects the effectiveness of prevention activities 

among adolescents who have already had abortion or 

labor.  

 

Figure 2: Dynamic of the specific weight adolescents 

with the first pregnancy among adolescents who had 

abortion during 2007-2011 

 

Against the background of a decrease in the 

total number of adolescent abortions, specific weight of 

spontaneous abortions has increased from 23.2% to 

45.0%.  This is difficult to explain and warrants further 

investigation. Figure 3 illustrates this trend. 

 

Figure 3: Dynamic of specific weight of adolescents 

spontaneous abortions among total adolescents 

abortions during the period 2007-2011 

  

During the analyzed period, there were two 

lethal outcomes from spontaneous abortions among 

females ages 15-18 (1 in 2008 and 1 in 2010). Abortion 

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ALIMBAYEVA 

 

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 United States License. 

 

This journal is published by the University Library System of the University of Pittsburgh as part  

of its D-Scribe Digital Publishing Program, and is cosponsored by the University of Pittsburgh Press. 

 

Central Asian Journal of Global Health 

Volume 2, No. 2 (2013)  |  ISSN  2166-7403  (online)  |  DOI 10.5195/cajgh.2013.38  |  http://cajgh.pitt.edu 

 

 

lethality in adolescents reached 0.02% in 2008 and 

0.03% in 2010. At the same time, the rate of total 

abortion lethality in Kazakhstan has never exceeded 

0.01%. This statistically confirmed database underlines 

the particular danger of unwanted pregnancy among 

adolescents. Data on regional specifics of adolescent 

abortions were not available.  

 

Conclusion 

This paper provides an overview of statistics on 

adolescent abortions, which is a serious public health 

concern in Kazakhstan. Despite modest improvements, 

adolescent abortions in Kazakhstan remain burdensome 

for medical specialists and teachers, calling for the need 

to establish more effective public health programs to 

reduce the number of abortions in young and vulnerable 

population groups. Adolescents who have had a 

previous abortion are at a higher risk of subsequent 

procedures as compared to those who have never had an 

abortion. Considering that there were two deaths 

associated with abortions in 2008 and 2010, adolescents 

must be better educated about reproductive health. Our 

paper demonstrates wide disparities in younger vs. older 

adolescent groups, with lesser success achieved in 

adolescents under the age of 15. Methods that are 

currently used for reduction of the total number of 

adolescent abortions in Kazakhstan need improvement, 

especially among females under 15 years of age.  

 

References 

1.  Preamble to the Constitution of the World Health 

Organization as adopted by the International Health 

Conference, New York, 19-22 June, 1946; signed on 22 July 

1946 by the representatives of 61 States (Official Records of 

the World Health Organization, no. 2, p. 100) and entered into 

force on 7 April 1948. 

(http://www.who.int/about/definition/en/print.html) 

2.  Convention on the Rights of the Child. London: Child Rights 

International Network, 1989. 

(http://www.crin.org/resources/treaties/CRC.asp) 

3.  Adolescent Growth and Development. Hong Kong: Hong 

Kong Polytechnic University, World Health Organization 

Collaborative Centre for Community Health Services.  

(http://www.youthnet.org.hk/jobaid/Module%201.pdf) 

4.  Women’s Health Fact Sheet. Geneva: World Health 

Organization, 2009. 

(http://www.who.int/mediacentre/factsheets/fs334/en/) 

5. Medinform. Medical Statistics. Almaty, KZ. 

http://www.medinfo.kz/medstat.jsp 

 

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http://www.who.int/about/definition/en/print.html
http://www.crin.org/resources/treaties/CRC.asp
http://www.youthnet.org.hk/jobaid/Module%201.pdf
http://www.who.int/mediacentre/factsheets/fs334/en/
http://www.medinfo.kz/medstat.jsp


 

 

ALIMBAYEVA 

 

 

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This journal is published by the University Library System of the University of Pittsburgh as part  

of its D-Scribe Digital Publishing Program, and is cosponsored by the University of Pittsburgh Press. 

 

Central Asian Journal of Global Health 

Volume 2, No. 2 (2013)  |  ISSN  2166-7403  (online)  |  DOI 10.5195/cajgh.2013.38  |  http://cajgh.pitt.edu 

  

 

 

Figure 1: Dynamic changes of the specific weight of adolescent abortions compared to total 

amount of abortions during the period 2007-2011  

 

 

 

 

  

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ALIMBAYEVA 

 

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 United States License. 

 

This journal is published by the University Library System of the University of Pittsburgh as part  

of its D-Scribe Digital Publishing Program, and is cosponsored by the University of Pittsburgh Press. 

 

Central Asian Journal of Global Health 

Volume 2, No. 2 (2013)  |  ISSN  2166-7403  (online)  |  DOI 10.5195/cajgh.2013.38  |  http://cajgh.pitt.edu 

 

 

Figure 2: Dynamic of the specific weight adolescents with the first pregnancy among 

adolescents who had abortion during 2007-2011   

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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CENTRAL ASIAN JOURNAL OF GLOBAL HEALTH 

 

 

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 United States License. 

 

This journal is published by the University Library System of the University of Pittsburgh as part  

of its D-Scribe Digital Publishing Program, and is cosponsored by the University of Pittsburgh Press. 

 

Central Asian Journal of Global Health 

Volume 2, No. 2 (2013)  |  ISSN  2166-7403  (online)  |  DOI 10.5195/cajgh.2013.38  |  http://cajgh.pitt.edu 

 

 

Figure 3: Dynamic of specific weight of adolescents spontaneous abortions among total 

adolescents abortions during the period 2007-2011 

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