Why Drug Dependency Of Newborn Babies In Rural Areas Is Increasing At An Alarming Rate?[VIDEO]

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The opioid epidemic is sweeping America. Even more shocking to hear is that rural counties are leading than urban areas.

The condition is called neonatal abstinence syndrome, where a newborn is kept under the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) under observation and treatment for withdrawal syndrome. The problem has surfaced in infants due to high opioid intake by mothers during pregnancy.

Opioids are semi-synthetic or synthetic drugs derived from Opium. It basically functions as a pain reliever which many doctors prescribe during pregnancy to alleviate back pain and abdominal pain, The New York Times reported.

Although, this acute medical condition is not new in America. In early 1970, many heroin addict mother has faced a similar situation in states like Philadelphia & New York.  

A recent federal study conducted using the data between 2012 and 2013, shows an alarming rise in neonatal abstinence syndrome in West Virginia, Maine, and Vermont. In a study published in JAMA Pediatrics, the drug-dependent infant cases are on the disproportionate rise in rural areas over urban areas for the first time.

Between 2003 to 2014, there is a 7-fold increase in newborns dependent on drugs in rural hospitals. While the urban infants rise in only increase by 4 times in the same period. This drug dependency has increased the medical cost of hospitals from $750 million in 2009 to $1.5 billion in 2013.

Not only that. The amount of time devoted by hospital staff to newborn in NICU shot up from 4% to nearly 20%, consuming already scarce resources in the rural hospitals.

According to The Christian Science Monitor, US lawmakers have already taken stock of the situation and in May 2016, the US House of Representatives has unanimously passed legislation to increase the safety standards for the newborn dependants on drugs.

However, the real killer of the problem is to attack the root cause. Many have opined that reducing the drug overdose of pregnant mother would not only reduce neonatal abstinence syndrome in the infants but also helps the mother to recover from drug abuse.