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Early Maternal Prenatal Cannabis Use and Child Developmental Delays

Lyndsay A Avalos1,2, Nina Oberman1, Stacey E Alexeeff1

  • 1Division of Research, Kaiser Permanente Northern California, Pleasanton.

JAMA Network Open
|October 18, 2024
PubMed

Insights

Maternal prenatal cannabis use did not show an association with child developmental delays up to age 5.5. Further research is needed on various cannabis use patterns during pregnancy.

Area of Science:

  • Obstetrics and Gynecology
  • Pediatrics
  • Public Health

Background:

  • Maternal prenatal cannabis use is linked to adverse neonatal outcomes.
  • Limited data exists on the association between prenatal cannabis exposure and child developmental trajectories.
  • Understanding these associations is crucial for prenatal care guidelines.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate the relationship between maternal cannabis use during early pregnancy and developmental delays in children.
  • To assess potential links between the frequency of prenatal cannabis use and developmental outcomes.

Main Methods:

  • A large cohort study of over 100,000 pregnancies was conducted.
  • Prenatal cannabis use was assessed via self-report and urine toxicology.
  • Child developmental outcomes, including speech, motor, and global delays, were tracked up to age 5.5 years using electronic health records.

Main Results:

  • No significant association was found between maternal prenatal cannabis use and speech and language disorders, global developmental delays, or motor delays.
  • The frequency of cannabis use (daily, weekly, monthly) did not alter the observed lack of association.
  • The study analyzed data from 119,976 pregnancies, with 5.6% reporting cannabis use.

Conclusions:

  • Maternal prenatal cannabis use in early pregnancy was not associated with an increased risk of early developmental delays in children.
  • Further research is recommended to explore diverse patterns of cannabis consumption throughout gestation.
  • Pregnant individuals should be informed about known risks associated with prenatal cannabis use, despite the lack of observed developmental delays in this study.
Abstract

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