255 PRENATAL METHADONE EXPOSURE: FACTORS AFFECT- ING SEVERITY OF WITHDRAWAL

Abstract

There is conflicting evidence in the literature concerning the relation between maternal methadone dose during pregnancy and the severity of the withdrawal reaction experienced by the newborn. As part of an ongoing longitudinal study of children born to methadone-maintained mothers, 38 children exposed to methadone in utero were observed and their withdrawal evaluated and coded on a scale of one(mild) to 3(severe) by a trained observer. The relation between severity of withdrawal and the maternal methadone dose(MMD) prior to delivery was not significant. The relation between birth weight (BW) and severity of withdrawal was also not significant. The data indicated clear sex differences in severity of withdrawal (see above Table), with significantly more males having moderate to severe withdrawal reactions than females (x2=3.69, p<.07). This finding confirms developmental data indicating that males are more vulnerable than females to adverse environmental factors .