An Update on the Burden of Neonatal Abstinence Syndrome in the United States

Abstract

To provide an estimate on the most recent burden of neonatal abstinence syndrome (NAS) in the United States. METHODS: The 2016 Kids' Inpatient Database, provided by the Healthcare Cost and Utilization Project and Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality and its partners, was used to identify patients with NAS in the United States. The data consisted of pediatric admissions from 4200 US hospitals recorded between January 1, 2016, and December 31, 2016. Data were converted to weighted form to project a national estimate on the possible number of neonates affected by NAS. Differences in sex, race, location, household income, primary payer form, length of stay, and total charges were studied. RESULTS: The sample contained 32 128 patients with NAS (0.8%), among whom 17 164 (53.5%) were boys and 14 935 (46.5%) were girls (P , .001); 23 027 (80.4%) were white (P , .001), and 13 583 (42.3%) were from the southern parts of the United States (P , .001). Medicaid covered 83.8% of patients, and 40.2% had an income within the first quartile of national averages (P , .001). The overall mean and median length of stay were 16.45 and 12.00 days, respectively, and the mean and median total charges were calculated as $79 937.

Establishing evidence-based pharmacologic treatments for neonatal abstinence syndrome: A retrospective case study

“…In 2016, U.S. hospital charges for NAS totaled $2.5 billion, with 83.8% of neonates with NAS covered by Medicaid. 6 https://doi.org/10.1017/cts.2022.431 Published online by Cambridge University Press…”

“…In addition to human costs, NAS carries substantial economic costs. In 2016, U.S. hospital charges for NAS totaled $2.5 billion, with 83.8% of neonates with NAS covered by Medicaid [6].…”

Addressing drivers of healthcare utilization for neonatal opioid withdrawal syndrome

“…Infants affected by Neonatal Opioid Withdrawal Syndrome (NOWS) are a growing patient population cared for by a variety of provider specialties [ 1 ] with costly healthcare utilization (HU) in the United States [ 2 – 4 ]. Between 2004–2014, the proportion of US births affected by neonatal withdrawal increased five-fold, to a rate of one affected infant born every 15 minutes [ 5 ].…”

Enhanced H3K4 Trimethylation in TNF-α Promoter Gene Locus with Cell Apoptosis in the Ventral-Medial Striatum following Opioid Withdrawal of Neonatal Rat Offspring from Morphine-Addicted Mothers

“…Early life adversity is related to increased risks for developing many behavioral and psychiatric disorders [1]. A spectrum of prenatal, intrapartum, and postnatal episodes is likely to contribute to neurodevelopment via interactions with the individual's genotype to disrupt specific neural and psychophysiological system-related cognitive functions, thereby enhancing the risk for psychopathologies later in life [2,3]. Indeed, children exposed to perinatal opioid drugs appear to have a higher mortality rate after birth and suffer from neurodevelopmental consequences and behavioral problems [4,5].…”