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As the number of drug overdose in the United States has grown expansively, it has become a major concern not only for the people affected directly, but also for the entire nation as a whole. However, amidst the debate on this issue, an entire group entirely affected is often neglected or not even thought of. This group consists of the babies born from mothers who are drug addicts.
These “drug” babies as they are often referred to suffer withdrawal symptoms known as neonatal abstinence syndrome. For the purposes of this paper, I would like to take a moment to focus on that group. I will explain what it is, discuss its impacts, and also how they develop certain disabilities in order to raise awareness about neonatal abstinence syndrome. Before jumping into our topic about the impacts of neonatal abstinence syndrome in babies, we must first analyze the increasing abuse of both prescription and non-prescription drugs in adults which is a major factor leading to its addiction. The frequent misuse of these drugs has contributed greatly to a country wide opioid epidemic causing serious damage to mostly young adults aged 18 to 25. The term opioid is generally made in reference to certain pain relievers which act on one’s nervous system to alleviate or relieve pain. Due to its morphine-like, numbing effect, a growing number of people have become addicted and dependent on these drugs. Some of the most common names of these drugs include: Tylenol with Codeine, OxyContin, and Percocet. These drugs which are meant to be prescribed by doctors for specific treatments are often sold on the streets to those who have become overly dependent on them. Coupled with other drugs such as heroin, this has led to our current opioid epidemic. According to the New York Times article “Inside a Killer Drug Epidemic: A Look at America’s Opioid Crisis” written by Julie Bosman, “public health officials have called the current opioid epidemic the worst drug crisis in American history, killing more than 33,000 people in 2015” (New York Times, 2017). This unfortunate situation will only get worse as more and more people abuse such drugs. The current opioid epidemic has caused numerous health concerns, injuries, and more severely, a growing number of deaths across the country. Prescription drugs when given by a doctor are helpful and can be used to alleviate many pains but when taken for recreational purposes, it becomes an addiction and poses a serious threat to not only the individual but puts the entire society at certain unwanted risks. According to the National Institute on Drug Abuse article America’s Addiction to Opioids: Heroin and Prescription Drug Abuse, “the number of unintentional overdose deaths from prescription pain relievers has soared in the United States, more than quadrupling since 1999. There is also growing evidence to suggest a relationship between increased non-medical use of opioid analgesics and heroin abuse in the United States” (Volkow, …show more content…
Stanford Children’s Health goes on to list some of the common withdrawal symptoms in full term babies which include: trembling, excessive crying, poor feeding and sucking, fever or unstable temperature, hyperactive reflexes, [and] tight muscle tone (Stanford Children’s Health). These symptoms usually start to appear 1 to 3 days after the child is born. As a result, these babies have to stay in the hospital longer than usual in order to be monitored and observed which can last up to a week. Preterm babies; however, have a lower chance of experiencing withdrawal symptoms and therefore, are at a lower risk.
Now that we have seen what neonatal abstinence syndrome (NAS) is and its resulting symptoms and signs, let us now look at how it is diagnosed. Because many of the symptoms associated with neonatal abstinence syndrome can be the cause of other conditions, the mother of the child is usually asked questions related to her drug use in order to help make a
more accurate diagnosis. Some of the questions which they might ask the mother might include which drugs did she take while pregnant and how often she did so. In addition, medical professionals might conduct a urine test to test for drugs.
The medical encyclopedia Medline Plus explains further how neonatal abstinence syndrome is diagnosed by stating the following:
Tests that may be done to help diagnose withdrawal in a newborn
As the number of drug overdose in the United States has grown expansively, it has become a major concern not only for the people affected directly, but also for the entire nation as a whole. However, amidst the debate on this issue, an entire group entirely affected is often neglected or not even thought of. This group consists of the babies born from mothers who are drug addicts.
These “drug” babies as they are often referred to suffer withdrawal symptoms known as neonatal abstinence syndrome. For the purposes of this paper, I would like to take a moment to focus on that group. I will explain what it is, discuss its impacts, and also how they develop certain disabilities in order to raise awareness about neonatal abstinence syndrome. Before jumping into our topic about the impacts of neonatal abstinence syndrome in babies, we must first analyze the increasing abuse of both prescription and non-prescription drugs in adults which is a major factor leading to its addiction. The frequent misuse of these drugs has contributed greatly to a country wide opioid epidemic causing serious damage to mostly young adults aged 18 to 25. The term opioid is generally made in reference to certain pain relievers which act on one’s nervous system to alleviate or relieve pain. Due to its morphine-like, numbing effect, a growing number of people have become addicted and dependent on these drugs. Some of the most common names of these drugs include: Tylenol with Codeine, OxyContin, and Percocet. These drugs which are meant to be prescribed by doctors for specific treatments are often sold on the streets to those who have become overly dependent on them. Coupled with other drugs such as heroin, this has led to our current opioid epidemic. According to the New York Times article “Inside a Killer Drug Epidemic: A Look at America’s Opioid Crisis” written by Julie Bosman, “public health officials have called the current opioid epidemic the worst drug crisis in American history, killing more than 33,000 people in 2015” (New York Times, 2017). This unfortunate situation will only get worse as more and more people abuse such drugs. The current opioid epidemic has caused numerous health concerns, injuries, and more severely, a growing number of deaths across the country. Prescription drugs when given by a doctor are helpful and can be used to alleviate many pains but when taken for recreational purposes, it becomes an addiction and poses a serious threat to not only the individual but puts the entire society at certain unwanted risks. According to the National Institute on Drug Abuse article America’s Addiction to Opioids: Heroin and Prescription Drug Abuse, “the number of unintentional overdose deaths from prescription pain relievers has soared in the United States, more than quadrupling since 1999. There is also growing evidence to suggest a relationship between increased non-medical use of opioid analgesics and heroin abuse in the United States” (Volkow, …show more content…
Stanford Children’s Health goes on to list some of the common withdrawal symptoms in full term babies which include: trembling, excessive crying, poor feeding and sucking, fever or unstable temperature, hyperactive reflexes, [and] tight muscle tone (Stanford Children’s Health). These symptoms usually start to appear 1 to 3 days after the child is born. As a result, these babies have to stay in the hospital longer than usual in order to be monitored and observed which can last up to a week. Preterm babies; however, have a lower chance of experiencing withdrawal symptoms and therefore, are at a lower risk.
Now that we have seen what neonatal abstinence syndrome (NAS) is and its resulting symptoms and signs, let us now look at how it is diagnosed. Because many of the symptoms associated with neonatal abstinence syndrome can be the cause of other conditions, the mother of the child is usually asked questions related to her drug use in order to help make a
more accurate diagnosis. Some of the questions which they might ask the mother might include which drugs did she take while pregnant and how often she did so. In addition, medical professionals might conduct a urine test to test for drugs.
The medical encyclopedia Medline Plus explains further how neonatal abstinence syndrome is diagnosed by stating the following:
Tests that may be done to help diagnose withdrawal in a newborn