Women’s Health, Wellness, and Reproductive Medicine

Unintended Pregnancy

Unintended pregnancy is defined as pregnancy that occurs either when a woman wanted to become pregnant in the future but not at the time she became pregnant, or one that occurred when she did not want to become pregnant then or at any time in the future. Unintended pregnancy has been linked to numerous maternal and child poor health outcomes, regardless of the outcome of the pregnancy. Efforts to decrease rates of unintended pregnancy have focused on improving access to effective contraception through improved counseling and removing barriers to contraception access.

Conversely, an "intended pregnancy" is one that is consciously desired at the time of conception or sooner. For research purposes, all pregnancies not explicitly categorized as "unintended" are combined, including those pregnancies where the pregnant person feels ambivalent or unsure about the pregnancy.