Homeless. Addicted to Heroin. About to Give Birth.
“Of the estimated 5.4 million women who abused opioid painkillers or heroin in 2016, some 26,000 were pregnant. (Both numbers are likely gross underestimates.) These pregnancies, nearly 9 in 10 of which are unplanned, carry major risks for mother and fetus alike. A woman who injects heroin through her pregnancy is significantly more likely than a nonuser to deliver a preterm baby with serious long-term health problems. Those risks diminish markedly if the mom takes medications to treat the addiction, but even so, the babies are often born in withdrawal. The condition, called neonatal abstinence syndrome, is characterized by high-pitched screaming, trembling, feeding difficulties, and hyperactive reflexes. ‘It’s like a collicky baby times five,’ says Dr. Stephen Patrick, a neonatologist at Vanderbilt University who studies drugs’ effects on newborns. The long-term consequences aren’t well understood but may include trouble paying attention, verbal impairments, and diminished IQ. Reported cases of neonatal abstinence syndrome quintupled from 2000 to 2012, corresponding with increases in maternal drug use.”