Newborns with Drug Withdrawal Syndrome

Did you know that babies born to mothers who were abusing drugs throughout their pregnancy are more likely to be readmitted to the hospital?

Newborns with drug withdrawal syndrome have been on the rise throughout recent years due to the increase in the amount of prescription medications being doled out by doctors. At womens sober living homes, one of the hot topics for discussion has been what exactly drug withdrawal syndrome in newborns is. For those who do not know, drug withdrawal syndrome occurs shortly after birth in babies whose mothers abused narcotic painkillers throughout their pregnancy. Some of the main risks include feeding problems, low birth weight and seizures.

Halfway houses in Florida have made this one of the main issues to tackle when it comes to helping their patients set up a healthy future for not only themselves but also for their future children. In one study done by researchers at Vanderbilt University in Nashville, they found that out of 750,000 births studied, more than 1,600 infants were born with drug withdrawal syndrome. From that number, the newborns were 2.5 times more likely to be readmitted to the hospital.

According to the lead investigator if the study, Dr. Stephen Patrick, the goal of the study was to lead “Efforts in many hospital systems to improve hospital care being delivered to infants with the syndrome.” He further went on to share that ultimately, they hope to find a way to have newborns born with drug withdrawal syndrome being readmitted to the hospital at all.