Study Examines Impact of Unintended Pregnancy Among Active-Duty Soldiers

FRIDAY, July 26, 2024 (HealthDay News) -- Estimates of unintended pregnancy (UIP) among active-duty service women (ADSW) indicate a considerable impact on the ability to meet Women, Peace, and Security objectives, according to a study published online July 25 in BMJ Military Health.

Miranda Lynn Janvrin, from the Henry M. Jackson Foundation for the Advancement of Military Medicine Inc. in Bethesda, Maryland, and colleagues estimated the number of UIPs among ADSW in the United States and examined the impact of these pregnancies on the ability to meet Women, Peace, and Security objectives as measured by maximum potential readiness days lost (mRDL). The number of UIPs was estimated by multiplying both the number of ADSW and the number of deliveries by age-adjusted rates of UIP. In fiscal year 2019, 230,596 ADSW were identified.

The researchers found that an estimated 12,683 ADSW experienced an UIP using the number of ADSW, resulting in an estimated 4,629,215 mRDL. An estimated 6,785 deliveries were the result of UIPs using the number of deliveries, yielding an estimated 2,476,364 mRDL. Estimates of UIPs were highest for those aged 18 to 24 years, Whites, those in a Junior Enlisted rank, and those in the Army.

"Dealing with UIPs proactively by encouraging comprehensive family planning and instituting additional reproductive health policies promoting, sex education and contraceptive options for service members would improve women's ability to meaningfully participate to meet the Department of Defense's Women, Peace, and Security objectives by ensuring that active-duty service members can make informed decisions about their reproductive health while maintaining operational effectiveness," the authors write.

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