A Study of clinical manifestations in infants born to mothers using methamphetamines: A descriptive study in infants with positive and negative methamphetamine urine tests
Keywords:
Methamphetamine, amphetamine, prenatal exposure, clinical manifestationsAbstract
Background: The use of methamphetamines during pregnancy has increased. Urine tests of newborns have revealed both positive and negative results for methamphetamine. However, there is limited clinical evidence regarding the differences in symptoms between the two groups of newborns.
Objective: To investigate the clinical manifestations of newborns born to mothers who used methamphetamine during the prenatal period at Hat Yai Hospital.
Methods: A retrospective study was conducted by reviewing medical records of newborns born to mothers who tested positive for methamphetamine in their urine during the prenatal period from March 1, 2021, to March 1, 2024. The symptoms and clinical outcomes of newborns with positive and negative urine methamphetamine results were evaluated. Multivariable logistic regression was used to assess the relationships between variables.
Results: A total of 319 newborns who were born to mothers with urine tested positive for methamphetamine were enrolled. Of those, 277 (86.8%) newborns had urine positive for methamphetamine and 42 (13.2%) newborns had negative results. The median maternal age was 29 years old, with 25.4% of the mothers had attended at least five antenatal visits according to the Department of Health. Severe preeclampsia and postpartum hemorrhage occurred in 16.9% and 7.2% of mothers, respectively. The median birth weight was 2,760 grams. In the positive and negative methamphetamine groups, low birth weight was observed in 20.2% and 38.1% of newborns, respectively, and the 1-minute Apgar score ≤7 in 3.2% and 11.9%, respectively. Newborns with positive urine methamphetamine had a significantly lower likelihood of preterm birth (adjusted odds ratio [aOR] 0.43; 95% confidence interval [CI], 0.21- 0.86), respiratory distress (aOR 0.46; 95% CI 0.23-0.91), hypoglycemia (aOR 0.28; 95% CI 0.08-0.96), admission to neonatal intensive or intermediate care (aOR 0.43; 95% CI 0.21-0.86), jaundice (aOR 0.17; 95% CI 0.03-0.95) and significant higher likelihood elevated body temperature (aOR 1.8; 95% CI 1.04-3.11) than those in the negative group.
Conclusion: This study found that the detection of methamphetamine in the urine of infants born to mothers who used methamphetamine during prenatal period was not correlated with the infants’ clinical manifestations. Therefore, it is recommended to monitor the newborn closely and perform urine testing when clinically indicated to assist in diagnosis and management, such as withdrawal symptoms or seizures.
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