Neonatal Abstinence Syndrome

The National Health Institute (NIH) explains that addictive drugs such as amphetamines, cocaine, barbiturates, diazepam, and opiates consumed during pregnancy pass from mother to the fetus by crossing the placenta. This causes the baby to become addicted to these drugs along with the mother. Once born, the newborn no longer receives these drugs which then results in NAS (“Neonatal abstinence syndrome”, 2012a).

Problematic substance use in pregnancy is prevalent among the Canadian population. The statistics are well documented in the literature. According to a Health Quality Ontario report from 2012, about one in 100 pregnant women giving birth in Ontario hospitals shows substance use. The rate of substance abuse among pregnant women has increased since 2009 by about ten percent. Dow et al. (2012) identify that the management of substance use is particularly problematic in Northern Ontario. Many First Nations communities are in a state of emergency regarding abuse of prescription narcotics (Dow et al., 2012, p. 489).

Substance abuse has been a worldwide problem at all levels of society since the beginning of time. Attention has been made toward the use of legal and illegal substance by pregnant women over the past several decades. Almost all drugs are known to cross the placenta and have some effect on the fetus. According to the American Academy of Pediatrics (2013) the first studies of the effect of substances consumed by a pregnant women to the developing fetus were identified in the 1960’s of prenatal tobacco use. These studies opened the door to further research and studies. The effects of Alcohol and opiate use have been studied since the 1970’s (Jones, Smith, 1973) and the effects of a variety of other drugs have been studied since 1979 and early 1980’s (Flinnegan, 1979).

The use of opioids during pregnancy has increased drastically over recent years, causing newborns to fall victim to the opioid crisis. It has now become an epidemic, affecting people in the United States and globally making it a major health concern. A vast percentage leading to the opioid crisis is due to women in their childbearing stages of life. Newborns born to women addicted to opioids suffer through a form of newborn drug withdrawal known as Neonatal abstinence syndrome (NAS), resulting in increased admission rates, prolonged length of stay in the hospital and infants often require medication to recover. NAS is a result of opioid exposure in utero characterized by “central nervous system hyperirritability and autonomic nervous system dysfunction” (Kraft et

(n.d.) also conducted a study focused on infants that were exposed to buprenorphine or methadone while in utero. Unlike MacMullen et al. (2014) their focus was on predicting how the symptoms of NAS might manifest in the exposed newborns. Since the 1970s (MacMullen et al., 2014) methadone has been the treatment of choice for mothers with opioid dependence during pregnancy, the use of this drug allows for a decrease in withdrawal symptoms for the child after birth. The main categories of symptoms include central nervous system hyperirritability, gastrointestinal dysfunction, respiratory distress and vague autonomic symptoms (MacMullen et al., 2014). Although methadone has been being used for many years buprenorphine has only been used since 2002 in the United States (MacMullen et al., 2014). Their research was consistent with Kaltenbach et al. (n.d.) in that infants born to buprenorphine-exposed mothers had lower scores for NAS than those born to methadone-exposed mothers, but still had varying severities of symptoms and scores across all infants. For at least 10 days after birth, an expert scored the newborns on a modified Finnegan scale every 4 hours. The results showed that high birth weight was often a predictor for high NAS scores, along with lower NAS scores for infants delivered by cesarean section. MacMullen et al. (2014) were unable to find any connection between the use of methadone and buprenorphine to indicators of symptoms of NAS. The main

Not all babies have the same symptoms or go through withdrawal in the same way. There are several types of symptoms these symptoms are: high pitched cry, tremors / jittering / shaking of arms, legs, face, yawning, hard time sucking during feeding times, poor weight gain, fast breathing, frantic sucking – fists, fingers, thumbs, trouble falling asleep and staying asleep, fussy – hard to calm, sneezing / stuffy nose, tense arms, legs and body, vomiting / diarrhea, skin rashes – more so in the diaper area and face, and warm to touch / sweating (Cincinnati Children's, 2015). Infants exposure to drugs in the womb can also cause health issues such as; birth defects, low birth weight, premature birth, small head circumference, sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS) and problems with development and behavior (University of Iowa Hospital and Clinics, 2015). The rates of NAS increased 5 times between the year 2000 and the year 2013. In 2012, there was an average of one infant born with NAS every 25 minutes in the United States, and that year alone NAS accounted for an estimated $1.5 billion in healthcare spending. (National institute on drug abuse, 2015).

As of now what is known about Opiate drug usage is that pregnant women using this drug give birth to babies with neonatal abstinence syndrome. Babies being born going through withdrawal because the fetus is no longer receives the drug. It was found that neonatal abstinence syndrome is passed when the drug is in the mother's bloodstream which then passes through the placenta into the fetus. Symptoms of neonatal abstinence syndrome in babies vary depending on how much opiate was used during the pregnancy. It includes premature birth, seizures, birth defects, and developmental delays as they grow. Babies who are born full term suffer from tremors, irritability, sleep problems, high-pitched crying, tight muscle tone, poor feeding, dehydration,

Neonatal abstinence syndrome is the term given to newborn babies experiencing a number of signs and symptoms as a direct result of exposure to addictive drugs whilst in the womb. (Medline Plus 2016). The main risk factor for these babies is parental drug/alcohol misuse during pregnancy. This is an internal risk factor as the babies are born addicted to a substance. It can be argued that there is a link between individuals who have drug and alcohol issues, and external risk factors such as unemployment, domestic

Neonatal abstinence syndrome (NAS) is a group of problems that occur in a newborn who was exposed to addictive opiate drugs while in the mother’s womb. This happens when a pregnant woman takes drugs such as heroin, codeine, inhalants, marijuana, methamphetamine, nicotine, prescription or even over-the-counter drugs. Many substances pass easily through the placenta, some substances that a pregnant woman takes also, to some degree, reach the baby (Neonatal abstinence syndrome, 2014). Just like adults, babies go through withdrawals from drugs. Symptoms of drug withdrawal in a newborn can develop immediately or couple of days after birth.

The condition occurs when the pregnant mother uses opiate drugs such as cocaine, heroin, oxycontin, methodone, or buprenorphine. These harmful substances pass across the placental membrane and into the fetal blood circulation, causing the fetus to become dependent on the drug. After delivery these infants are no longer exposed to the substances and will go through a withdrawal period.

When women use drugs during and after pregnancy it can have very harmful effects on the infant. A child can experience a wide range of problems with their physical health, motor skills, cognitive development, and behavioral and social development (Coles, 2010). The reason why drug use affects the fetus and not just the mother is because the toxins from the drugs can permeate the placenta. Drugs that are considered harmful agents are called teratogens (Ashford & LeCroy, 2013) and all of the drugs discussed in this paper are considered to be teratogens. Since the fetus is sensitive to teratogens at all stages of development it is vital for mothers to refrain from using any dangerous substance in an effort to increase the likelihood of

Work Cited Ko JY, Patrick SW, Tong VT, Patel R, Lind JN, Barfield WD. “Incidence of Neonatal Abstinence Syndrome — 28 States, 1999–2013”. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention 2016, dx.doi.org/10.15585/mmwr.mm6531a2. Accessed 13 Feb. 2017.

Why it is important in our society to know what teratogen is, and some ways to prevent this birth defect in our society. Teratogen is a agent that disturbs the development of an embryo. Well, what exactly causes these disturbances in the embryo? By taking medicine during pregnancy, medicine prescribe to new mothers can cause abnormality in pregnancy. Although many women take medications during pregnancy, the medicine prescribe can be harmful. A example may be a woman during pregnancy comes across morning sickness; therefore, she may ask her doctor to prescribe medicine to treat her morning sickness. A common medicine to take during the 60's was thalidomide. However, over the years researchers found that thalidomide caused partial absence

Alarmingly, the number of women who make the dangerous decision to drink, smoke, or use drugs throughout their pregnancy is increasing daily. When an expecting mother uses a substance while pregnant, she poses a serious threat to both her health and her child’s. Alcohol, drugs, and tobacco each present specific health risks that run to the fetus and can affect the child in many different ways, which can all result in major complications throughout the child’s development and lifetime and can unfortunately, sometimes, lead to death. These substances are also known as teratogens, which are factors from the outside environment that can present health issues in the development of the

Research shows that every hour, a baby is born addicted to opiate drugs. Every state should implement the Tennessee statute to reduce the following risks- neonatal abstinence syndrome, costly expenses, and life-long complications for the child.