Standardized test performance of children with a history of prenatal exposure to multiple drugs/cocaine

The association of prenatal cocaine exposure with expressive and receptive language skills, phonological processing and reading ability at age 17

OBJECTIVE

Prenatal cocaine exposure (PCE) has been associated with small but significant effects on language development in childhood and early adolescence. This study examined whether this association persists into later adolescence and what relationship language skills may have with reading proficiency in this population.

METHODS

Enrolled were 338 (167 with PCE, 171 with NCE or no cocaine exposure) 17-year-olds recruited at birth who, together with their current caregiver, were seen as part of a 17-year follow-up. Participants were given assessments of reading achievement (WIAT-III), receptive and expressive language (CELF-IV), and phonological processing (CTOPP). Relationships between PCE status and language outcomes were modeled using multiple linear regression controlling for environmental and caregiver factors, and other prenatal substance exposures.

RESULTS

Adolescents with PCE scored lower in areas of phonological processing and reading related skills compared to adolescents with NCE. PCE by sex interactions were identified on language, memory and spoken language comprehension, with lower scores for girls with PCE compared to girls with NCE.

CONCLUSION

These findings suggest the persistence of PCE's relationship with phonological awareness well into adolescence. PCE was also associated with lower scores on measures of skills related to reading ability, which may be a manifestation of the observed deficits in phonological processing.

The physical and developmental outcomes of children whose mothers are substance abusers: Analysis of associated factors and the impact of early intervention

Background/objectives

Maternal illicit drug use is associated with negative physical and developmental outcomes for their born children. We aim to find out the incidence of different developmental problems in a cohort of Chinese children born to drug-abusing mothers, compare the physical health and developmental outcomes of the subjects recruited in the Integrated Program to the Comprehensive Child Development Service (CCDS), and to study the potential factors on their associations.

Methods

A retrospective longitudinal cohort study with frequent clinical assessments of the children's physical and developmental outcomes in a HKSAR's regional hospital from birth until 5 years old. 123 Children in Integrated Program were compared with 214 children in CCDS between 1 January 2008 and 28 February 2019. Cox regression analysis was performed to determine the possible factors associated with the developmental outcomes.

Results

Developmental delay was detected in 129 children (38.9%). CCDS group has significantly higher incidence of cognitive delay (p = < 0.001), language delay (p = < 0.001), motor delay (p = < 0.001), social delay (p = 0.002), and global delay (p = 0.002). On Cox multivariable regression analysis, integrated program (HRadj 0.53, 95% C. I. 0.34-0.84), social support (HRadj 0.45, 95% C.I. 0.25-0.80), and maternal abstinence from drug use up to 2-year post-delivery (HRadj 0.62, 95% C.I. 0.40-0.95) were significant protective factors, while male gender (HRadj 1.73, 95% C.I. 1.18-2.54) was a significant risk factor.

Conclusion

CCDS achieves early engagement of drug-abusing expectant mothers during pregnancy, and an early integrated program with multidisciplinary collaboration was an independent factor in improving the developmental outcomes of these vulnerable children.

Prenatal cocaine exposure: An examination of childhood externalizing and internalizing behavior problems at age 7 years

Aim – This study examines the relationship between prenatal cocaine exposure and parent-reported child behavior problems at age 7 years. Methods – Data are from 407 African-American children (210 cocaine-exposed, 197 non-cocaine-exposed) enrolled prospectively at birth in a longitudinal study on the neurodevelopmental consequences of in utero exposure to cocaine. Prenatal cocaine exposure was assessed at delivery through maternal self-report and bioassays (maternal and infant urine and infant meconium). The Achenbach Child Behavior Checklist (CBCL), a measure of childhood externalizing and internalizing behavior problems, was completed by the child's current primary caregiver during an assessment visit scheduled when the child was seven years old. Results – Structural equation and GLM/GEE models disclosed no association linking prenatal cocaine exposure status or level of cocaine exposure to child behavior (CBCL Externalizing and Internalizing scores or the eight CBCL sub-scale scores). Conclusions – This evidence, based on standardized ratings by the current primary caregiver, fails to support hypothesized cocaine-associated behavioral problems in school-aged children with in utero cocaine exposure. A next step in this line of research is to secure standardized ratings from other informants (e.g., teachers, youth self-report).

Declaration of Interest: This research was conducted in the context of an ongoing longitudinal study funded by the National Institutes of Health National Institute on Drug Abuse (R01 DA 06556). Support was also provided by a NIDA career development award (K01 DA 16720), a NIDA research training award (T32 DA 07292), the General Clinical Research Center (MOI RR 16587), and the Health Foundation of South Florida.

Prenatal drug exposure: infant and toddler outcomes

This manuscript provides an overview of the current scientific literature on the impact of maternal drug use, specifically opioids and cocaine, during pregnancy on the acute and long-term outcomes of infants and toddlers from birth through age 3 years. Emphasis with regard to opioids is placed on heroin and opioid substitutes used to treat opioid addiction, including methadone, which has long been regarded as the standard of care in pregnancy, and buprenorphine, which is increasingly being investigated and prescribed as an alternative to methadone. Controlled studies comparing methadone at high and low doses, as well as those comparing methadone with buprenorphine, are highlighted and the diagnosis and management of neonatal abstinence syndrome is discussed. Over the past two decades, attention of the scientific and lay communities has also been focused on the potential adverse effects of cocaine and crack cocaine, especially during the height of the cocaine epidemic in the United States. Herein, the findings are summarized from prospective studies comparing cocaine-exposed with non-cocaine-exposed infants and toddlers with respect to anthropometric growth, infant neurobehavior, visual and auditory function, and cognitive, motor, and language development. The potentially stigmatizing label of the so-called "crack baby" preceded the evidence now accumulating from well-designed prospective investigations that have revealed less severe sequelae in the majority of prenatally exposed infants than originally anticipated. In contrast to opioids, which may produce neonatal abstinence syndrome and infant neurobehavioral deficits, prenatal cocaine exposure appears to be associated with what has been described as statistically significant but subtle decrements in neurobehavioral, cognitive, and language function, especially when viewed in the context of other exposures and the caregiving environment which may mediate or moderate the effects. Whether these early findings may herald more significant learning and behavioral problems during school-age and adolescence when the child is inevitably confronted with increasing social and academic challenges is the subject of ongoing longitudinal research.

Developmental outcome in children with intrauterine exposure to substances

The developmental outcome of children born to Swiss substance-dependent mothers in a residential treatment program was studied in a sample of 61 children ranging from infancy to preadolescence (mean age = 5.10, SD = 3.10 years) by use of age-appropriate tests of intelligence. A large list of biological and psychosocial risk factors was tested for associations with outcome in the children. The mean profile of test findings across all age ranges was significantly lower than population norms and there was an excess of children with subnormal intellectual functioning. Performance IQ was associated negatively only with intrauterine substance exposure, but with none of the other risk factors. Among the various substances, predominantly heroin or methadone were responsible for this association when controls for nicotine or cannabis consumption were made. The study provides further evidence that intrauterine exposure to heroin and methadone negatively affects the developmental outcome in the offspring of substance-dependent mothers.

Prenatal cocaine exposure and children's language functioning at 6 and 9.5 years: moderating effects of child age, birthweight, and gender

OBJECTIVE

To evaluate whether prenatal cocaine exposure (PCE), or the interaction between PCE and contextual variables, is associated with children's language at age 6 and 9.5 years, adjusting for relevant covariates.

METHODS

Analyses were based on 160 low-income, urban children from a prospective study who completed a standardized language assessment at 6 and 9.5 years. PCE was determined using neonatal meconium assays and maternal self-report.

RESULTS

Significant interaction effects of PCE on language outcomes were found in multivariate longitudinal analyses using generalized estimating equations (GEE). Children with PCE had lower receptive language than unexposed children at 6 but not at 9.5 years, lower expressive language if they had lower birthweight, and lower expressive and total language if they were female. Other risk (e.g., violence exposure) and protective factors (e.g., preschool experience) were related to language outcomes regardless of PCE status.

CONCLUSIONS

Age, birthweight, and gender moderated the relation between PCE and school-aged children's language.

Prenatal alcohol and cocaine exposure: influences on cognition, speech, language, and hearing

This paper reviews research on the consequences of prenatal exposure to alcohol and cocaine on children's speech, language, hearing, and cognitive development. The review shows that cognitive impairment, learning disabilities, and behavioral disorders are the central nervous system manifestations of fetal alcohol syndrome (FAS), and cranio-facial abnormalities are also present. Delays in language acquisition, as well as receptive and expressive language deficits, are commonly reported. The cranio-facial abnormalities of FAS, which sometimes include cleft palate, make the child prone to otitis media with effusion and conductive hearing loss. The family environment in which one or both parents is a heavy alcohol user presents challenges to a child with normal intelligence, but may be especially deleterious to the child with mental retardation. Prenatal exposure to cocaine results in subtle cognitive disabilities when measured at 4 years of age. The cognitive effects may be ameliorated by a stimulating and sensitive care-giving environment. A small, deleterious "cocaine-effect" is also seen in speech and language development. The child with prenatal exposure to cocaine may be considered at increased risk for language delay or disorder. There is no evidence that prenatal cocaine exposure by itself is a risk factor for sensorineural hearing impairment, although auditory evoked potentials from the brainstem and cortex suggest some abnormalities in central auditory processing, at least during the newborn period. The strong effect of the home environment for ameliorating the effects of prenatal cocaine-exposure suggests that a family-focused approach for cognitive, language, and social-emotional habilitation would be beneficial to all.

LEARNING OUTCOMES

The learner will be able to describe the major features of fetal alcohol syndrome and how they relate to speech, language, hearing, and cognitive disorders. The learner will review the literature and determine research needs with respect to language, speech, and hearing among infants and children with fetal alcohol syndrome. Similarly, the learner will distinguish the outcomes of prenatal alcohol-exposure from those of prenatal cocaine-exposure. The learner will summarize the controversy regarding the possible stigmatization of cocaine-exposed infants. The learner will summarize the speech, language, and hearing effects of prenatal cocaine-exposure.

Expressive and receptive language functioning in preschool children with prenatal cocaine exposure

OBJECTIVE

To estimate the relationship between severity of prenatal cocaine exposure and expressive and receptive language skills in full-term, African American children at age 3 years.

METHODS

Language was assessed at age 3 using the Clinical Evaluation of Language Fundamentals-Preschool (CELF-P). The sample included 424 children (226 cocaine exposed, 198 non-cocaine exposed) who received preschool language assessments at age 3, drawn from a cohort of 476 children enrolled prospectively at birth.

RESULTS

Structural equation modeling was used to regress expressive and receptive language as intercorrelated response variables on level of prenatal cocaine exposure, measured by a latent construct including maternal self-report of cocaine use and maternal/infant urine toxicology assays and infant meconium. Results indicated a.168 SD decrease in expressive language functioning for every unit increase in exposure level (95% CI = -.320, -.015; p =.031) after consideration for fetal growth and gestational age as correlated response variables. Receptive language was more modestly related to prenatal cocaine exposure and was not statistically significant. Results for expressive language remained stable with inclusion of the McCarthy general cognitive index as a response variable (expressive language beta = -.173, 95% CI = -.330, -.016; p =.031), and with adjustment for maternal age and prenatal exposures to alcohol, tobacco, and marijuana (expressive language beta = -.175, 95% CI = -.347, -.003; p =.046). Additional child and caregiver environmental variables assessed at age 3 were also evaluated in varying statistical models with similar results.

CONCLUSION

The evidence from this study supports a gradient relationship between increased level of prenatal cocaine exposure and decreased expressive language functioning in preschool-aged cocaine-exposed children.

Severity of prenatal cocaine exposure and child language functioning through age seven years: a longitudinal latent growth curve analysis

The current study estimates the longitudinal effects of severity of prenatal cocaine exposure on language functioning in an urban sample of full-term African-American children (200 cocaine-exposed, 176 noncocaine-exposed) through age 7 years. The Miami Prenatal Cocaine Study sample was enrolled prospectively at birth, with documentation of prenatal drug exposure status through maternal interview and toxicology assays of maternal and infant urine and infant meconium. Language functioning was measured at ages 3 and 5 years using the Clinical Evaluation of Language Fundamentals--Preschool (CELF-P) and at age 7 years using the Core Language Domain of the NEPSY: A Developmental Neuropsychological Assessment. Longitudinal latent growth curve analyses were used to examine two components of language functioning, a more stable aptitude for language performance and a time-varying trajectory of language development, across the three time points and their relationship to varying levels of prenatal cocaine exposure. Severity of prenatal cocaine exposure was characterized using a latent construct combining maternal self-report of cocaine use during pregnancy by trimesters and maternal and infant bioassays, allowing all available information to be taken into account. The association between severity of exposure and language functioning was examined within a model including factors for fetal growth, gestational age, and IQ as intercorrelated response variables and child's age, gender, and prenatal alcohol, tobacco, and marijuana exposure as covariates. Results indicated that greater severity of prenatal cocaine exposure was associated with greater deficits within the more stable aptitude for language performance (D = -0.071, 95% CI = -0.133, -0.009; p = 0.026). There was no relationship between severity of prenatal cocaine exposure and the time-varying trajectory of language development. The observed cocaine-associated deficit was independent of multiple alternative suspected sources of variation in language performance, including other potential responses to prenatal cocaine exposure, such as child's intellectual functioning, and other birth and postnatal influences, including language stimulation in the home environment.

Influence of prenatal cocaine exposure on early language development: longitudinal findings from four months to three years of age

The influence of prenatal cocaine exposure on children's language functioning was evaluated longitudinally at six time points from 4 months to 3 years of age. The Miami Prenatal Cocaine Study prospectively enrolled 476 full-term African-American infants at birth, categorized as cocaine-exposed (n = 253) or non-cocaine-exposed (n = 223) by maternal self-report and bioassays (maternal/infant urine, meconium). The Bayley Scales of Infant Development, scored using the Kent Scoring Adaptation for language, was administered at 4, 8, 12, 18, and 24 months. The Clinical Evaluation of Language Fundamentals-Preschool was administered at 3 years. In longitudinal analyses using Generalized Estimating Equations, cocaine-exposed children had lower overall language skills than non-cocaine-exposed children (D = -0.151; 95% CI = -0.269, -0.033; p =.012). Longitudinal findings remained stable after evaluation of potential confounding influences including other prenatal substance exposures and sociodemographic factors. Preliminary evidence also indicated possible mediation through an intermediary effect involving cocaine-associated deficits in fetal growth.

Fetal effects of cocaine: an updated meta-analysis

BACKGROUND

A very large number of women in the reproductive age group consume cocaine, leading to grave concerns regarding the long term health of millions of children after in utero exposure. The results of controlled studies have been contradictory, leading to confusion, and, possible, misinformation and misperception of teratogenic risk.

OBJECTIVE

To systematically review available data on pregnancy outcome when the mother consumed cocaine.

METHODS

A meta-analysis of all epidemiologic studies based on a priori criteria was conducted. Comparisons of adverse events in subgroups of exposed vs. unexposed children were performed. Analyses were based on several exposure groups: mainly cocaine, cocaine plus polydrug, polydrug but no cocaine, and drug free.

RESULTS

Thirty three studies met our inclusion criteria. For all end points of interest (rates of major malformations, low birth weight, prematurity, placental abruption, premature rupture of membrane [PROM], and mean birth weight, length and head circumference), cocaine-exposed infants had higher risks than children of women not exposed to any drug. However, most of these adverse effects were nullified when cocaine exposed children were compared to children exposed to polydrug but no cocaine. Only the risk of placental abruption and premature rupture of membranes were statistically associated with cocaine use itself.

CONCLUSIONS

Many of the perinatal adverse effects commonly attributed to cocaine may be caused by the multiple confounders that can occur in a cocaine using mother. Only the risk for placental abruption and PROM could be statistically related to cocaine. For other adverse effects, additional studies will be needed to ensure adequate statistical power.

Developing language skills of cocaine-exposed infants

OBJECTIVE

To assess whether there is an association of level of fetal cocaine exposure to developmental precursors of speech-language skills at 1 year of age, after controlling for confounding factors.

DESIGN

In a prospective, longitudinal, quasi-experimental, matched cohort design, 3 cocaine exposure groups were defined by maternal self-report and infant meconium assay: nonexposure (n = 131), heavier exposure (n = 66), >the 75th percentile for maternal self-report and >the 70th percentile of benzoylecgonine concentration, and all others as lighter exposure (n = 68). At 1 year of age, the Preschool Language Scale-3 was administered by examiners unaware of infant drug status.

RESULTS

Independent of confounding drug, medical, and environmental factors, more heavily exposed infants had lower auditory comprehension scores than nonexposed infants and lower total language scores than lighter and nonexposed infants. More heavily exposed infants were also more likely to be classified as mildly delayed by total language score than nonexposed infants. There were positive linear relationships between the concentration of benzoylecgonine in meconium and all outcomes and between maternal report of severity of prenatal cocaine use with poorer auditory comprehension indicating a relationship between amount of exposure and poorer outcomes.

CONCLUSIONS

This study documents significant behavioral teratogenic effects of fetal cocaine exposure on attentional abilities underlying auditory comprehension skills considered to be precursors of receptive language. Pediatricians are in a unique position to monitor early development of cocaine-exposed infants and make timely referrals for intervention.

Cocaine: effects of in utero exposure on the fetus and neonate

In North America, an increasing number of babies are prenatally exposed to cocaine, yet the implications of cocaine use during pregnancy are not fully understood. The effects of cocaine are exerted primarily by its influence on aminergic receptors in the central and peripheral nervous systems. Developmental, physiological, and behavioral problems in infants and children are likely outcomes of maternal cocaine abuse, but these findings are confounded by concomitant use of other drugs such as marijuana and cocaine and by factors such as time, dosage, and route of cocaine intake. Different screening options exist for cocaine and its metabolites, including sampling of neonatal urine, hair and meconium need to be considered, as do the sensitivity and the ethical implications of such testing. Clinical management of cocaine-exposed infants requires attention to several issues, including: central nervous system irritation, cardiac anomalies, apnea, and feeding difficulties, as well as infant safety and follow-up postdischarge. Early detection and intervention remain the primary objectives of caring for cocaine-exposed infants.

Adverse effects of fetal cocaine exposure on neonatal auditory information processing

BACKGROUND

Studies with animals have shown that in utero exposure to cocaine interferes with fetal brain development by disrupting the processes of neuronal proliferation, differentiation, and migration, often leading to subsequent neurobehavioral deficits. However, studies with humans have produced inconsistent findings. Although neurobehavioral abnormalities have been observed among cocaine-exposed infants in several studies and in some cases dose-response effects have been found, the specific neurobehaviors affected vary from one study to the next. Researchers studying the effects of fetal cocaine-exposure are faced with many difficult challenges. For example, women who use cocaine typically use other substances in addition to cocaine, many of the methods available for identifying cocaine-exposed neonates are not reliable, and the available methods for assessing cocaine-exposed newborns may not be sufficiently sensitive to detect the subtle effects of cocaine on the developing central nervous system. Despite these difficulties, there is a growing body of research that suggests that fetal cocaine exposure is associated with subsequent language deficits among children exposed in utero. However, it is virtually impossible to disentangle the effects of the impoverished environments in which these children are often raised from the effect, if any, of fetal cocaine exposure. To determine the effects of fetal cocaine exposure independent of postnatal environmental effects, cocaine-exposed neonates would ideally be tested within the first few weeks of birth, and to identify early risks for subsequent language delay, well-researched auditory information processing measures could be used.

OBJECTIVE

The purpose of the present study was to assess the effects of fetal cocaine exposure on neonatal auditory information processing ability. To overcome limitations of some previous studies on the neuroteratogenic effects of cocaine, such as unreliable subject identification techniques, inadequate control over confounding variables, and questionable measures of central nervous system integrity, a valid measure of auditory information processing was used in a rigorous, case-control design.

METHOD

Newborn information processing was assessed using habituation and recovery of head-turning toward an auditory stimulus across the 3 phases of the procedure: familiarization, novelty, and dishabituation. During the familiarization phase, the infant orients and habituates to a repeated word; during the novelty phase, the infant recovers head-turning to a novel word and subsequently habituates to this word; and during the dishabituation phase the infant displays renewed head-turning to the return of the original stimulus. Testing takes approximately 20 minutes. This procedure has been shown previously to discriminate among infants at high-, moderate-, and low-risk for subsequent developmental delay. Twenty-five cocaine-exposed and 25 nonexposed control neonates, identified by meconium analysis, urine analysis, and/or maternal self-report, were tested on the auditory information processing procedure. The majority of infants were tested within the first few days of birth. Cocaine-exposed and control neonates were matched on birth weight, gestational age, Apgar scores, age at testing, and socioeconomic status as reflected by household income. Mothers were matched on age, weight gain, cigarette smoking, and alcohol consumption.

RESULTS

Fetal cocaine exposure was associated with impaired auditory information processing. Both cocaine-exposed and nonexposed control neonates oriented to the familiarization stimulus, but cocaine-exposed neonates displayed impaired habituation. Moreover, cocaine-exposed neonates did not recover or habituate to the novel stimulus or dishabituate to the return of the familiarization stimulus. (ABSTRACT TRUNCATED)

Comparative study of the phonology of preschool children prenatally exposed to cocaine and multiple drugs and non-exposed children

Cocaine and multiple drug abuse among young adults has spawned research interest in fetal exposure and the sequela of that exposure during the formative developmental years. Previous study of the language development of exposed children has not specifically addressed phonological acquisition. In the present study, the speech of 25 children prenatally exposed to cocaine and multiple drugs was analyzed and compared to that of 25 children who were not prenatally exposed to determine if differences were evident in their phonological patterns. The children ranged in age from 22 months to 51 months. The number and type of phonological processes produced, number of utterances needed to produce a 50-word sample, number of unintelligible words produced, and Home Observation for Measurement of the Environment (HOME) scores were recorded and analyzed. The use of cocaine and multiple drugs during pregnancy was associated with an increase in the use of phonological processes.