New Treatment Guidance for Pregnant Mothers with Opioid Use Disorder

The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) released new Clinical Guidance for Treating Pregnant and Parenting Women with Opioid Use Disorder and Their Infants.   

SAMHSA’s Clinical Guidance comes at a time of great need for effective opioid use disorder (OUD) treatment.  In 2016, over 20,000 pregnant women reported using heroin or misusing pain relievers in the past month. Newborn babies of mothers who used opioids while pregnant are at risk of neonatal abstinence syndrome–a group of physical and neurobehavioral signs of withdrawal.

The guidance, which consists of 16 fact sheets on prenatal, infant, and maternal postnatal care, contains four elements: clinical scenario; clinical action steps; supporting evidence and clinical considerations; and web resources. Detailed, evidence-based treatment options for pregnant women with OUD including pharmacotherapy with methadone, buprenorphine, and buprenorphine/naloxone are provided.

Click HERE for more information