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Understanding vision outcomes in children with history of prenatal opioid exposure: a single-center pilot study

Journal of Perinatology (2024)Cite this article

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TO THE EDITORS:

Children affected by maternal opioid use disorder (OUD) are at risk for visual impairment, including reduced visual acuity, delayed visual maturation, cortical visual impairment, nystagmus, and strabismus, with an incidence exceeding ten times the general population [1, 2]. This critical topic remains a knowledge gap due to inconsistent findings regarding prenatal opioid effects on visual development [3], and anticipatory guidance to ensure robust follow-up may be lacking. The objectives of our pilot study were to assess (1) post-discharge vision and ocular health in opioid-exposed infants at our center and (2) the feasibility of contacting families after hospital discharge.

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References

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Tufts University School of Medicine, Boston, MA, USA

    Cade Herman, Sylvia Yoo & Elizabeth Yen

  2. Tufts University, School of Arts and Sciences, Medford, MA, USA

    Natalie Finton

  3. Department of Ophthalmology, Tufts Medical Center, Boston, MA, USA

    Sylvia Yoo

  4. Tufts Medicine Pediatrics-Boston Children’s, Division of Newborn Medicine, Boston, MA, USA

    Elizabeth Yen

Authors
  1. Cade Herman
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  2. Natalie Finton
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  3. Sylvia Yoo
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  4. Elizabeth Yen
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Contributions

EY, SY: conceptualized and designed the study, obtained IRB approval, reviewed, and revised the paper. CH: drafted the questionnaire and the paper. CH, NF: consented and interviewed patients, reviewed the paper. CH, EY: finalized the questionnaire, performed statistical analysis, interpreted the data, revised, and finalized the paper. All authors approved the final paper as submitted and agree to be accountable for all aspects of the work.

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Correspondence to Elizabeth Yen.

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The authors declare no competing interests.

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Herman, C., Finton, N., Yoo, S. et al. Understanding vision outcomes in children with history of prenatal opioid exposure: a single-center pilot study. J Perinatol (2024). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41372-024-01969-5

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41372-024-01969-5

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