Neonatal Abstinence Syndrome

The Division of TennCare will partner with VUMC as part of the MOM program focusing on 26 rural and urban counties to improve the outcomes for women with opioid use disorder and their infants. Read More

Babies born after being exposed to both opioids and benzodiazepines before birth are more likely to have severe drug withdrawal, requiring medications like morphine for treatment, compared to infants exposed to opioids alone. Read More

“America’s Opioid Epidemic” is the theme of the 27th annual Joel G. Hardman Student-Invited Pharmacology Forum, beginning at 9 a.m. Wednesday, June 27, in the Vanderbilt Student Life Center. Read More

Infants who are diagnosed with drug withdrawal after birth who are treated with medication as outpatients at home are treated three times longer than infants treated solely as inpatients, according to a new Vanderbilt study. Read More

In the United States, one infant is born every 15 minutes with withdrawal symptoms after being exposed to opioids before birth, according to a new study published in the journal Pediatrics. Read More

Stephen Patrick, MD, MPH, MS, assistant professor of Pediatrics and Health Policy in the Division of Neonatology at Monroe Carell Jr. Children’s Hospital at Vanderbilt, testified before Congress recently about the rise and impact of drug withdrawal symptoms in newborns, also known as neonatal abstinence syndrome (NAS). Read More

Stephen W. Patrick, M.D., MPH, MS, has been chosen to receive the Nemours Child Health Services Research Award, recognizing his work surrounding neonatal abstinence syndrome, a drug withdrawal syndrome experienced by infants exposed to opioids while in utero. Read More

Male infants are more likely at birth than their female counterparts to be diagnosed with drug withdrawal symptoms, also known as neonatal abstinence syndrome (NAS), and to require treatment, according to a new Vanderbilt study published in Hospital Pediatrics. Read More

Punitive approach has not been shown to be effective and may deter women from seeking help The American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) issued a statement today stating that a public health response, rather than a punitive approach, is needed to address the increasing number of pregnant women using opioids. Read More

Standardizing hospital care policies across institutions for infants diagnosed with drug withdrawal symptoms at birth reduces their length of treatment and hospitalization, according to new research led by Vermont Oxford Network, Vanderbilt and the University of Michigan Health System. Read More

Infants diagnosed with drug withdrawal symptoms at birth, also known as neonatal abstinence syndrome (NAS), are nearly 2.5 times as likely to be readmitted to the hospital in the first month after being discharged compared with full-term infants born without complications, according to new Vanderbilt research released in the journal Hospital Pediatrics. Read More

Stephen Patrick, M.D., MPH, assistant professor of Pediatrics and Health Policy in the Division of Neonatology with the Monroe Carell Jr. Children’s Hospital at Vanderbilt, recently testified before congress about the rise in neonatal abstinence syndrome. Read More

The number of infants born in the United States with drug withdrawal symptoms, also known as neonatal abstinence syndrome (NAS), nearly doubled in a four-year period. Read More

Legally prescribed narcotics taken during pregnancy can lead to neonatal abstinence syndrome, especially in combination with tobacco or SSRIs. Read More

In the United States, one infant is born each hour with drug withdrawal, known as neonatal abstinence syndrome (NAS), after being exposed to opioid medications like oxycodone in utero. Read More