Library and Academic Services: Substance Use Disorders and Nursing Care: Pregnancy

Introduction

Substance Use and Pregnancy

The use of alcohol and other drugs during pregnancy has been linked with various acute and chronic health risks on the pregnancy and fetus/infant. Some of these health effects may be short-term and entirely reversible, while others may be long-term irreversible conditions.

This module includes informative books, ebooks, journals, databases, videos, and more to assist you with learning and understanding more about the harms and health risks associated with the use of alcohol and other drugs during pregnancy.

Image source: Pixabay.com

Websites, Reports and Papers

Alcohol Use and Co-Use of Other Substances Among Pregnant Females Aged 12–44 Years United States, 2015–2018 (CDC) [PDF]
Drinking alcohol during pregnancy can cause fetal alcohol spectrum disorders, including birth defects, behavioural disorders, and impaired cognitive development (1).
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Little is known about the co-use of other substances by females who drink during pregnancy. CDC used 2015–2018 data from the National Survey on Drug Use and Health (NSDUH) to estimate the overall and trimester-specific prevalence of self-reported drinking in the past 12 months,
Alcohol Use in Pregnancy (CDC)
There is no known safe amount of alcohol use during pregnancy or while trying to get pregnant. There is also no safe time during pregnancy to drink. All types of alcohol are equally harmful, including all wines and beer.
FASDs are preventable if a woman does not drink alcohol during pregnancy.
Canada Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder Research Network (CanFASD)
The Canada Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder Research Network (CanFASD) is a collaborative, interdisciplinary research network, with collaborators, researchers and partners across the nation. It is Canada’s first comprehensive national Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder (FASD) research network.
FASDs: Treatments (CDC)
No two people with FASDs are exactly alike. Children with FASDs can have impairments in learning, memory, behavior, social interactions, or combinations of these impairments. Some children have poor growth, including reduced head size.
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A minority of children with FASDs have minor facial features that reflect problems in brain growth before birth. These symptoms and features can range from mild to severe. Treatment services for people with FASDs are most effective when they address a person’s specific impairments and build upon his or her own strengths.
FASD Services in Manitoba [PDF]
List of services in Manitoba
Goodman, Saunders, E. C., & Wolff, K. B. (2020). In their own words: a qualitative study of factors promoting resilience and recovery among postpartum women with opioid use disorders. BMC Pregnancy and Childbirth, 20(1), 178–10.
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Opioid use disorder (OUD) is associated with substantial morbidity and mortality for women, especially during the perinatal period. Opioid overdose has become a significant cause of maternal death in the United States, with rates highest in the immediate postpartum year. While pregnancy is a time of high motivation for healthcare engagement, unique challenges exist for pregnant women with OUD seeking both substance use treatment and maternity care, including managing change after birth.
Krans, Bobby, S., England, M., Gedekoh, R. H., Chang, J. C., Maguire, B., Genday, P., & English, D. H. (2018). The Pregnancy Recovery Center: A women-centered treatment program for pregnant and postpartum women with opioid use disorder. Addictive Behavior
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To evaluate the impact of women-centered substance abuse treatment programming on outcomes among pregnant women with opioid use disorder (OUD). We compared two retrospective cohorts of pregnant women with OUD on buprenorphine maintenance therapy who delivered an infant at the University of Pittsburgh from 2014 to 2016.
Reporting of Child Protection and Child Abuse [PDF]
A resource for those involved in identifying, reporting and dealing with a child in need of protection, including child abuse. Reporting of Child Protection and Child Abuse has been developed to help you protect Manitoba children. The handbook provides detailed guidelines on how to recognize and report child abuse and children in need of protection.
Substance Use & Abuse
If you are pregnant or trying to become pregnant, it is important for you to know that drinking alcohol and smoking are harmful to your developing baby. Drugs, too, can be harmful so it is important to talk to your health care provider before taking any drugs, even over the counter drugs such as cough syrup or muscle relaxants. Your developing baby can be harmed by alcohol, tobacco or drugs.
Treatment and Care for Pregnant Women who use Alcohol and/or Other Drugs [PDF]
Accessing health care and social supports prenatally is an important factor in improving maternal and infant outcomes. Without prenatal care, women who struggle to abstain from sing substances during pregnancy are more likely to miscarry, give birth prematurely and have infants with low birth weights or who have symptoms of withdrawal

Videos

Helping Babies Born with Drug Addiction

PSE & G Children’s Specialized Hospital helps babies born to mothers who used drugs during pregnancy. For more New Jersey news visit NJTV News online at njtvnews.org

Babies Born Addicted to Drugs and Dying Preventable Deaths | NBC Nightly News
An NBC/Reuters investigation finds an alarming number of drug-dependent babies die every year in preventable deaths after they leave the hospital and go home.
Born on Opioids | What It's Like
Nicole was out dancing with friends when she tripped and broke her arm in six places. She never thought that would be the start of an addiction to opioids. Then she got pregnant and feared her baby would be born dependent. This is an intimate look inside an innovative—and shockingly effective—treatment.
Dealing with Canada's opioid babies
Statistics for 2016-17 show that 1,850 babies were born addicted to drugs in Canada, a condition called neonatal abstinence syndrome. Now, a special program in Hamilton is hoping to help these newborns by keeping moms and babies together as they learn to settle into a new drug-free life.
Dr. Bergeron speaks on drugs and pregnancy
Dr. Bergeron explains the impact drug use and prenatal drug exposure has on the development of an infant.
The opioid epidemic’s toll on pregnant women and babies
The risk for overdose from opioid painkillers and heroin among women, including pregnant women, has skyrocketed, which means a growing number of babies are born dependent on opioids. NewsHour Weekend Special correspondent Alison Stewart reports on the challenges for pregnant
Pregnancy & Drug Use
In Fairfield County, nearly 1 in 3 pregnant women at local hospitals test positive for drugs at some point during their pregnancies.
Screening, Brief Intervention, & Referral to Treatment (SBIRT): A Universal Tool for Pregnant Women
This video is designed to walk clinical teams through the process of SBIRT. SBIRT helps with early identification of women who need treatment for substance use disorder. Presented from the perspective of a practicing OB/GYN physician interacting with a woman affected by substance use.
Video: Disturbing increase in babies born with opioid addictions
According to the Canadian Institute for health information, from 2015 to 2016, 1,744 babies in Canada were hospitalized with Neonatal Abstinence Syndrome, and 927 of those babies were from Ontario.

Library resources

Fetal Alcohol Syndrome: A Lifelong Challenge by Spohr, Hans-Ludwig ; Wolter, Heike ; Becker, Gela ; Nagel, Manuela ; Siedentopf, Jan-Peter ; van Noort, Betteke Maria
Publication Date: 2018
The harmful consequences of alcoholism for the unborn child are still largely unknown. This book presents a detailed description of fetal alcohol syndrome as well as fetal alcohol spectrum disorders with respect to their clinical presentation, diagnosis, epidemiology, and pathogenesis. It also includes detailed considerations of underlying psychopathology, prevention, and therapy as well as the social consequences and impacts to patients.
Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders by Sushil Sharma
Location: ebook
Publication Date: 2017
Alcoholism exerts a high genetic as well as epigenetic load and may be regarded as one of the most prevalent, identifiable, and preventable neuropsychiatric illnesses afflicting modern society today. Alcohol constituted 3.2% of all worldwide deaths in the year 2006 and is associated with >60 diseases, including fetal alcohol spectrum disorder (FASD), cancers, cardiovascular diseases, liver cirrhosis, neuropsychiatric disorders and life-threatening injuries...
Mothers, addiction, and recovery : finding meaning through the journey by Peterson, Wendy E., editor.; Armstrong, Laura Lynne, editor.; Foulkes, Michelle, editor.
Publication Date: 2018
This anthology is a collection of personal accounts, research, treatment approaches and policy commentary exploring women’s experiences of mothering in the context of addiction. Individual chapters focus on a variety of addictions during pregnancy or mothering including misuse of substances, food and smartphones.
Mothers and Illicit Drugs by Susan C. Boyd
Location: ebook
Publication Date: 2016
During the past decade, media and medical forces have combined to create an alarming view of pregnant mothers who use illicit drugs. The result has been increased state control of these women and their infants. This in-depth study is the first in Canada to look at how mothers who use illicit drugs regard the laws, medical practices, and social services that intervene in their lives.

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