Women who are addicted to opioids and trying to conceive may lower their chances of pregnancy. Opioid use before conceiving was correlated with a 29% lower chance of achieving pregnancy, compared to women who did not use opioids.
They not only face issues conceiving but also using opioids during pregnancy may be associated with a greater chance of a pregnancy loss. Using opioids in the early stages of pregnancy is nearly 1.5 times more likely to have a miscarriage compared to women who had not used any opioids during pregnancy. Women using opioids after conception, between 1-2 months were 2.5 times more likely to have a miscarriage.
While it is possible to achieve pregnancy despite being addicted to opioids, it is important for women wanting to become pregnant to contact their healthcare provider, to develop a plan of care to ensure not only a successful pregnancy, but also so that the baby is not born addicted to opioids as well, and therefore undergoes severe withdrawal upon birth, a condition known as neonatal abstinence syndrome.
