Early growth patterns of methadone-addicted infants
I. J. Chasnoff, R. Hatcher and W. J. Burns
The early growth patterns of 15 full-term infants born to mothers on
well-controlled, low-dose methadone hydrochloride maintenance were studied.
Mean birth weight and length were at the tenth percentile, and mean head
circumference was at the fifth percentile. Early withdrawal symptoms
persisted for three to four months, and mean growth parameters continued
along their respective percentiles. As withdrawal symptoms abated at 4 to 6
months, infants became more responsive, easier to handle, and demonstrated
an accelerated growth pattern. This acceleration of growth at 4 to 6 months
of age corresponded to patterns found in previous animal studies.
