Pregnant women who use cocaine or heroin while taking methadone to beat their addiction may weaken their placenta, opening the door to dangerous infections that could further harm an unborn baby, researchers say.
Photograph by: Roslan Rahman, AFP/Getty Images
LONDON (Reuters) - Pregnant women who use cocaine or heroin while taking methadone to beat their addiction may weaken their placenta, opening the door to dangerous infections that could further harm an unborn baby, researchers said on Thursday.
Their study in a laboratory found that exposure to either of the drugs in the presence of methadone -- used to wean people off narcotics -- harmed the placenta and allowed other dangerous substances through the organ's protective barrier.
"As the consumption of illegal drugs, especially cocaine, is increasing in many countries, our results ... may improve the practical management in monitoring pregnant women," Antoine Malek of Zurich University Hospital and colleagues reported.
"More toxic substances or bacteria and viruses may cross the placenta and harm the fetus."
The placenta is an organ rich in blood vessels that develops in the lower part of the womb during pregnancy. It transfers oxygen and nutrients from the mother to the fetus and is expelled after birth.
The researchers collected placentas from uncomplicated pregnancies after caesarean section from a group of volunteers. Experiments showed that while the drugs did not increase the transfer of methadone, they did allow other toxic substances or bacteria to seep through.
The findings, published in BioMed Central's Reproductive Biology and Endocrinology, suggest this somehow compromises the protective barrier function of the placenta, the researchers said.
(Reporting by Michael Kahn; editing by Tim Pearce)
Pregnant women who use cocaine or heroin while taking methadone to beat their addiction may weaken their placenta, opening the door to dangerous infections that could further harm an unborn baby, researchers say.
Photograph by: Roslan Rahman, AFP/Getty Images
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I think that researchers should make there point a little more clearer and get more research;they do not say that these woman smoke or not too;and been said that smoking causes weaking of the placenta;i think they need to be more thorough;befor they start scaring pregnant woman off a drug that may help them in a life long battle with addiction and off drugs that could cost them there lives.
Researchers need to remember - women who self medicate with narcotics are often using alcohol as well. Nothing causes more harm than alcohol.
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Methadone was originally developed by the Nazis and named "Dolophine" in honour of Adolph sHitler. It's a nasty addictive drug; studies have shown that junkies can quit heroin easier than methadone. One miserable weekend of withdrawal or a lifetime of being strung out? It's a no-brainer.