Substance Misuse During Pregnancy: Its Effects and Treatment

Abstract

Prenatal care reduces the impact of illicit drug use on perinatal outcomes. Women who misuse substances are often excluded from mainstream society and, on becoming pregnant, feel guilty about their drug misuse and the potential effects this could have on their unborn baby. These women are vulnerable in many ways and agencies must ensure that they are not excluded from antenatal care. The latest enquiry into maternal deaths published in the UK (CEMACH report) highlights how women with socially complex lives who died were far less likely to have sought antenatal care early in pregnancy or to remain in regular contact with maternity services. Of the women who died from any cause, 11% had problems with substance abuse of whom 60% were registered addicts. Gaps in communication between agencies was highlighted as a particular problem.

Identifying Targets to Improve Antenatal Care for Substance Misuse in Pregnancy: An Observational Study

“…We retrospectively analysed the demographic and birth outcomes of a sample of pregnant women with a history of substance misuse and the five-year follow-up of children born from these pregnancies. Our aim was to identify knowledge gaps and trends in the population who engage with antenatal care to target the undertreated subpopulation and propose recommendations in their multifactorial care [11,12].…”