Surge of Addicted Infants Challenges Hospitals Nationwide
One of the many consequences of the opioid crisis has been a growing population of babies born to addicted mothers, As a result, hospitals across the country are struggling to find viable treatment options.
As reported by Time, the surge has outpaced the science, and no one knows the best way to treat the opioid epidemic’s youngest patients.
Trying to cope with the rising numbers of affected infants, hospitals around the United States are taking a scattershot approach to treating the tremors, hard-to-soothe crying, diarrhea and other hallmark symptoms of newborn abstinence syndrome.
“It’s a national problem,” said Dr. Lori Devlin, a University of Louisville newborn specialist. “There’s no gold-standard treatment.”
With help from $1 million in National Institutes of Health funding, researchers are seeking to change that by identifying the practices that could lead to a national standard for evidence-based treatment. A rigorous multi-center study comparing treatments and outcomes in hard-hit areas could start by the end of this year, said Dr. Matthew Gillman, who is helping lead the effort.
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To read more about how hospitals are struggling to treat addicted infants, please visit Time.com.
