Follow-up of infants prenatally exposed to cocaine

Maternal cocaine use during pregnancy continues to be of great concern for health care professionals. Research in this area has increased as investigators examine the effects of prenatal cocaine exposure in the infant/young child. This paper will critically review the literature, identify the primary care needs of infants and young children with a known history of prenatal cocaine exposure, and present guidelines for the primary care practitioner to monitor the infant's physiologic and developmental sequelae during the first 3 years of life. Findings in the literature demonstrate inconsistencies in regard to the physiologic and developmental outcomes of infants/young children prenatally exposed to cocaine. Further research is warranted, as it is evident from studies that not all investigators are controlling for confounding variables such as poly-drug use, which is necessary in isolating cocaine's effects. Subtle effects, however, have been reported from well-controlled studies and, thus, particular attention needs to be paid to early identification and interventions by primary care practitioners to prevent negative health outcomes. The guidelines proposed assist the practitioner with a thorough and focused approach to assessing the physiologic and developmental effects that are currently known to occur in the infant/young child prenatally exposed to cocaine.