Prenatal exposure to methadone or buprenorphine: Early childhood developmental outcomes. | Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences

Kaltenbach K, O'Grady KE, Heil SH, Salisbury AL, Coyle MG, Fischer G, Martin PR, Stine S, Jones HE. Prenatal exposure to methadone or buprenorphine: Early childhood developmental outcomes. Drug and alcohol dependence. 2018 Dec 1;185(185). 40-49. PMID: 29413437 [PubMed] PMCID: PMC5906792 NIHMSID: NIHMS939455.

Abstract

Methadone and buprenorphine are recommended to treat opioid use disorders during pregnancy. However, the literature on the relationship between longer-term effects of prenatal exposure to these medications and childhood development is both spare and inconsistent.