Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jan 28, 2026

A Procedure to Study the Effect of Prolonged Food Restriction on Heroin Seeking in Abstinent Rats
Published on: November 11, 2013
Associations between Orofacial Clefting and Neonatal Abstinence Syndrome
Cody L Mullens1,2, Ian L McCulloch1, Kristen M Hardy1
1West Virginia University, School of Medicine.
Background:
Orofacial clefting (OFC) is the most common developmental craniofacial malformation, and causal etiologies largely remain unknown. The opioid crisis has led to a large proportion of infants recovering from neonatal abstinence syndrome (NAS) due to in-utero narcotics exposure. We sought to characterize the prevalence of OFC in infants with NAS.
Methods:
This cohort study analyzed live births at our institution from 2013 to 2017 to identify any association between OFC and NAS.
Results:
Prevalence of OFC was 6.79 and 1.63 (per 1,000 live births) in the NAS and general population, respectively. Odds ratios for NAS patients having developed OFC, isolated cleft palate, isolated cleft lip, and combined cleft lip and palate compared with the general population were found to be 4.18 (P = 0.001), 5.92 (P = 0.001), 3.79 (P = 0.05), and 2.94 (P = 0.35), respectively. Analyses performed comparing the NAS and general populations to control for potential confounding variables influencing the NAS population yielded no significant differences with exception of in-utero exposure to physician prescribed opioids.
Conclusions:
Prevalence of OFC in infants with NAS was higher than the general live birth population. Isolated cleft palate and isolated cleft lip, specifically, were significantly more prevalent in NAS patients compared with the general population and were associated with in-utero opioid exposure.
Related Concept Videos
Association Areas of the Cortex
Prefrontal Association Area: This area is located in the frontal lobe and is involved in planning, decision-making, and moderating social behavior. It connects with primary motor areas,...
Associative Learning
Classical conditioning, also known...
Somatosensory, Motor, and Association Cortex
Genome-wide Association Studies-GWAS
GWAS does not require the identification of the target gene involved in...
Nephrotic Syndrome I : Introduction
Acute Coronary Syndrome I: Introduction

