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Substance Use Disorders in Pregnancy

Substance use during pregnancy, particularly the use of opioids, has dramatically increased in the last decade. Learn more about the Society's efforts to develop clinical guidance and scale up advocacy efforts related to screening and treating pregnant women with opioid use disorders (OUD), as well as pain management during pregnancy and the postpartum period. 

  • Gathering Thought Leaders: In January 2018, under the leadership of  Dr. Alfred Abuhamad, SMFM convened a two-day workshop called "Substance Use Disorders in Pregnancy." The event was co-hosted by the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists and the American Society of Addiction Medicine and brought together leaders in obstetric care and addition medicine. 
  • Experts Issue Clinical Guidance on Pain Management in the Postpartum Period: SMFM endorses the ACOG Committee Opinion on Postpartum Pain Management (#742), which includes recommendations for treating postoperative cesarean pain, the implications for breastfeeding, caring for pregnant women and new moms with opioid use disorder and more.
  • Eliminating Bias Through the Standardization of Care: SMFM is a member of the Alliance for Innovation on Maternal Health (AIM), a national quality improvement initiative. AIM develops best practices or "bundles" that support the standardization of health care services for pregnant and postpartum women. Standardization and reduced variation in care has been shown to improve maternal health outcomes. Among others, SMFM supported the development of a bundle that addresses "Obstetric Care for Women with Opioid Use Disorders."
  • Funding Research: SMFM teamed up with Aetna to award grant funding to Dr. Lorie Harper to study the use of telemedicine to treat opioid use disorder in rural pregnant women.

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