Negative effects of prenatal drug exposure on infants
and children
A mother's abuse of heroin or prescription opioids during pregnancy
can cause a withdrawal syndrome (called neonatal abstinence
syndrome, or NAS) in her infant. It is also likely that some drugexposed
children will need educational support in the classroom to
help them overcome what may be subtle deficits in developmental
areas such as behavior, attention, and thinking. Ongoing research is
investigating whether the effects of prenatal drug exposure on the
brain and behavior extend into adolescence to cause developmental
problems during that time period.