Abstract
Illicit drug use is a global problem that also affects pregnant women. Substance use and alcohol abuse during pregnancy may have various harmful consequences for both mothers and foetuses. Intrauterine exposure to illicit substances can be investigated through maternal reports and toxicological tests on mothers’ and/or newborns’ samples. While the negative effects of alcohol and opioid use on pregnancy, the foetus, and/or newborn are well established, the effects of cocaine use remain controversial. We performed a review of the literature to evaluate the current state of knowledge of the effects of intrauterine cocaine exposure on newborns’ and children’s long-term development and to highlight possible implications for health professionals dealing with women who use cocaine during pregnancy. Although intrauterine cocaine exposure has been associated with reduced infant measurements, no specific amount of cocaine use exerting such effects has been determined, and no long-term effects have been confirmed. The evidence of cocaine use during pregnancy justifies a clinical and social takeover of the mother and newborn without assuming that there will certainly be long-term damage related to intrauterine cocaine exposure, but also considering other possible associated factors.
Highlights
Illicit drug use is a global health problem that affects people of all genders and age groups
The way and degree to which foetal cocaine exposure leads to negative long-term effects on infant neurodevelopmental competence have not been established
Group 2: increased rate of preterm delivery, low birthweight, intrauterine growth retardation; Group 1: rates of these complications similar to the drug-free group; mean birthweight, length and head circumference for term infants reduced in Group 2 infants; cocaine-exposed infants’
Summary
Illicit drug use is a global health problem that affects people of all genders and age groups. In the United States, the National Center for Health Statistics reported that more than 11% of people aged 12 years and older used illicit drugs in the previous month [1]. The 2005 National Survey on Drug Use and Health estimated that there were 2.4 million frequent cocaine users in the United States. The 2010 National Survey on Drug Use and Health conducted by the National Institute on Drug Abuse reported illicit drug use rates among pregnant women of approximately 16% from 15 to years of age, more than 7% from to years of age, and 1.9% from to 44 years of age [3]. According to the World Health Organization’s guidelines for the identification and management of substance use and substance use disorders in pregnancy published in 2014, healthcare providers ‘should ask all pregnant women about their use of alcohol and other substances’ [4]
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