Social and medical problems in children of heroin-addicted parents

The social and medical problems of 75 children of intravenous heroin-addicted parents were assessed between January 1985 and December 1987. The children ranged between 4 days and 14 years of age and suffered from serious childhood diseases. The problems identified in these children were classified into three groups: infectious diseases, nutritional diseases, and parental neglect and/or disinterest. Common conditions included gastroenteritis or inflammation of the stomach and intestines in 24 percent of children; pneumonia in 21 percent; malnutrition in 17 percent; infection of the upper airways in 13 percent; bacterial infection of the blood in 12 percent; child abuse in 4 percent; AIDS in 3 percent; and other types of infections in 24 percent. In addition to heroin addiction, diseases that were reported in parents included infection with hepatitis B virus, AIDS, and alcoholism. Thirty-seven percent of fathers were not employed, and 19 percent of parents had been in prison. Children of intravenous heroin-addicted parents should be managed by a multidisciplinary approach to prevent disease and to decrease the costs of health care. (Consumer Summary produced by Reliance Medical Information, Inc.)