Incidence of complications among infants born from addicted mothers in Fatemieh hospital in Shahroud City, Iran

Background & Aim: Mothers addicted to drugs may transfer their addiction to the embryo and there would be numerous complications for mothers and infants because of the addiction. The current study was performed aimed at investigating complications of drug abuse among infants born from addicted mothers in Fatemieh hospital in Shahroud City, Iran. Methods & Materials: This study was a descriptive-analytical study conducted in cross-sectional manner. The study was carried out on 995 infants born in Fatemieh hospital of Shahroud City in 2011. Data were collected using two questionnaires including demographic characteristics and maternal and neonatal addiction complications. Results: Results showed that 1.5% of mothers delivered in Fatemieh hospital were addicted to opioid drug. The opium was the most consumed drug by the addicted mothers in this study. Substance abuse during pregnancy put the infants in the risk of preterm delivery, low birth weight (LBW), admission to the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU), restlessness, and lack of feeding well. In addition, abnormal crying, tremors and muscle rigidity, tachypnea, vomiting, convulsions, diarrhea, hyperreflexia, and fever were observed among babies born from the addicted mothers. There was a significant relationship between LBW and cesarean section (C-section) with drug use among mothers (P < 0.050). Conclusion: Given increasing incidence of addiction among pregnant women, attention to informing about these complications during prenatal period is necessary.