Abstract
BackgroundDrug use during pregnancy is difficult to ascertain, and maternal reports are likely to be inaccurate. The aim of this study was to estimate the prevalence of illicit drug use among pregnant women by using maternal hair analysis.MethodsA toxicological analysis of hair was used to detect chronic recreational drug use during pregnancy. In 2007, 347 mother-infant dyads were included from the Hospital La Candelaria, Santa Cruz de Tenerife, Canary Islands (Spain). Data on socioeconomic characteristics and on substance misuse during pregnancy were collected using a structured questionnaire. Drugs of abuse: opiates, cocaine, cannabinoids and amphetamines were detected in maternal hair by immunoassay followed by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry for confirmation and quantitation.ResultsHair analysis revealed 2.6% positivity for cocaine and its metabolites. Use of cocaine during pregnancy was associated with unusual behaviour with potentially harmful effects on the baby.ConclusionsThe results of the study demonstrate significant cocaine use by pregnant women in Canary Islands. The data should be used for the purpose of preventive health and policy strategies aimed to detect and possibly to avoid in the future prenatal exposure to drugs of abuse.
Highlights
Drug use during pregnancy is difficult to ascertain, and maternal reports are likely to be inaccurate
It is well known that maternal self-reports on drug use history proved to be unreliable an objective biological marker which can yield a cumulative reflection of long-term exposure to illicit drugs is needed
Parental socioeconomic and demographic characteristics in relation to results obtained by hair analysis are reported in Table 1 Parental ethnicity and maternal or paternal socioeconomic status were not associated with cocaine use during pregnancy, but cocaine use appeared to be more prevalent in Spanish mothers with unskilled jobs
Summary
Drug use during pregnancy is difficult to ascertain, and maternal reports are likely to be inaccurate. In Spain, It is well known that maternal self-reports on drug use history proved to be unreliable an objective biological marker which can yield a cumulative reflection of long-term exposure to illicit drugs is needed. Since drugs and their metabolites are permanently deposited in the protein matrix of the hair, they can be detected in hair several months after use, which provides an advantage over other biological markers, such as urine or blood which are limited to present only a “snapshot” of acute exposure to drugs in the previous 24-48 hours [13,14,15]. Acquiring maternal hair is easy and availability is a non-issue
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