Background: Adolescent health concerns are an important
source of information that should be considered
when planning school and community health promotion
policies, programs and services. Adolescence is a critical
period of human development and the health concerns
of adolescents can point to important issues that may be
eclipsed by epidemiologic and other clinical sources of
information. This study aimed to assess the health concerns
of adolescents living in Tehran, Iran and to examine
associations between selected demographics and the
health concerns reported by participants.
Methods: This study was a population-based cross-sectional
survey in 2011. Data were collected from a stratified
random cluster sample of 915 adolescents, aged 14–18
years, living in Tehran, using the Persian version of the
Adolescent Health Concern Inventory (AHCI-P). The data
were analyzed using the ?2
, Mann-Whitney and KruskalWallis
tests and logistic regression analysis.
Results: The mean numbers of health concerns in girls
and boys were 48 (±27.6) and 44.5 (±27.4) respectively. The
highest ranking health concern subscale for both girls
and boys was The Future, and “being successful” was
endorsed as the most prominent concern in the subscale.
Female (OR: 1.42, CI 95%: 1.08–1.87), mother’s educational
level (OR: 2.23, CI 95%: 1.07–4.65) and living in northern
(OR: 1.76, CI 95%: 1.13–2.74) and western (OR: 2.02, CI 95%:
1.30–3.16) regions of Tehran were significant predictors of
a higher level of health concerns.
Conclusion: Findings can be used to inform school and
public health promotion policies, programs and supportive
services designed to improve the overall health and
well-being of adolescents.