Mishka Terplan, MD, MPH

As the United States experiences an opioid crisis, how are pregnant individuals impacted?

This is the complete chapter on opioids in pregnancy and postpartum from Protocols for High-Risk Pregnancies, 7th Edition, edited by John T. Queenan, MD, Catherine Y. Spong, MD, and Charles J. Lockwood, MD, MHCM.

In this protocol, Terplan reviews screening for substance use and diagnosis and management of addiction during pregnancy, labor and delivery, and postpartum. The information is presented against the backdrop of the current opioid crisis. Tables on medication choice and protocols and on risk and protective factors for neonatal abstinence syndrome (NAS) are included.

Women with behavioral conditions need ongoing care through pregnancy and postpartum, but our health care system makes this a challenge