Neurodevelopmental and Psychological Assessment of Adolescents Born to Drug-Addicted Parents: Effects of SES and Adoption

• NCJ Number: 231060
• Journal: Child Abuse and Neglect Volume: 34 Issue: 5 Dated: May 2010 Pages: 354-368
• Author(s): Asher Ornoy; Lulu Daka; Gil Goldzweig; Yoni Gil; Ludmila Mjen; Shabtai Levit; Emi Shufman; Rachel Bar-Hamburger; Charles W. Greenbaum
• Date Published: May 2010
• Length: 15 pages
• Grant Number(s): 0325161
• Sponsoring Agency: Anti-Drug Authority of Israel
• Publication Format: Article
• Publication Type: Research (Applied/Empirical)
• Language: English
• Country: United States of America

Annotation

This study assessed the effects of prenatal (in utero) exposure (PE) to heroin on the cognitive and emotional development of adolescents.

Abstract

Results of the present study indicate that children exposed to drugs of abuse prenatally, including those adopted away, and children who grow up in low socioeconomic status (SES) backgrounds, may be at risk of relatively reduce cognitive functioning in adolescence. Prenatal exposure to heroin may have long-term consequences for development during early and middle childhood. This study examined the cognitive, social, and emotional functioning of adolescents exposed to drugs prenatally, and investigated the extent to which the early adoption of children exposed prenatally to drugs would alleviate the possible effects of exposure. Participants include 191 Jewish Israeli adolescents, 12 to 16 years of age and born in Israel, as well as their mothers who had or had not been exposed prenatally to drugs and differing in SES, and in adoptive status. Tables and references