Overdose Deaths During Pregnancy, Postpartum Period Rose From 2018 to 2021

From 2018 to 2021, drug overdose deaths rose significantly among pregnant and postpartum girls and women aged 10 to 44, according to areport published today inJAMA Psychiatry. Among pregnant and postpartum women aged 35 to 44 years, drug overdose deaths more than tripled —from 4.9 deaths per 100,000 mothers aged 35 to 44 with a live birth in the 2018 period to 15.8 per 100,000 in the 2021 period.The study revealed that most of these overdose deaths occurred outside health care settings, indicating the need for strengthening community outreach and maternal medical support.“The stigma and punitive policies that burden pregnant women with substance use disorder increase overdose risk by making it harder to access lifesaving treatment and resources,” National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) Director Nora Volkow, M.D., who was senior author of the study, said in anews release. “Reducing barriers and the stigma that surrounds addiction can open the door for pregnant individuals to seek and receive evidence-based treatment and social support to sustain their health as well as their child’s health.”For the study Volkow, Beth Han, M.D., Ph.D., M.P.H., and others at NIDA analyzed data from the National Center for Health Statistics, including cause of death files and semiannual numbers of mothers aged 10 to 44 years with a live birth. Pregnancy-associated mortality ratios were defined as deaths during pregnancy or within one year of delivery per 100,000 mothers with a live bi...
Source: Psychiatr News - Category: Psychiatry Tags: access to care death JAMA Psychiatry Nora Volkow overdose death postpartum period pregnancy stigma Source Type: research