Optimal prenatal opioid use disorder care may reduce odds of preterm birth

The Illinois Perinatal Quality Collaborative—a statewide network of hospital teams, perinatal clinicians, public health leaders and policymakers dedicated to improving obstetric and neonatal care—launched the Mothers and Newborns Affected by Opioids (MNO) initiative in 2018. A primary goal of the MNO initiative is to increase the use of medication-assisted treatment (MAT) and recovery treatment services (RTS) in pregnant patients with opioid use disorder (OUD).

Ann Borders, MD, MPH, MSc, clinical associate professor and ILPQC executive director, Northshore University Health System, Evanston Hospital, Evanston, Illinois, led a research team to determine associations between prenatal MAT and RST and pregnancy outcomes. She presented the findings at the Society for Maternal-Fetal Medicine’s 42nd Annual Pregnancy Meeting.¹

Borders’ primary goal was to see what—if any—impact prenatal MAT and RTS provision had on preterm birth and higher gestational age. From 92 hospitals across Illinois, monthly key measures were reported for 2,095 patients with OUD at delivery from July 2018 to December 2020.

Researchers found that prenatal RTS and MAT, when received independently or together, were associated with lower odds of preterm birth and higher gestational age, regardless of race/ethnicity and maternal age. During the analysis period, the ILPQC facilitated collaborative learning opportunities, rapid-response data and quality improvement support, and the rates of patients receiving MAT and RTS increased from 41% to 78% and from 48% to 67%, respectively. In a subgroup analysis of patients only receiving prenatal care, researchers still found significant association between lower preterm birth and RTS or both MAT and RTS.

Reference

1. Borders A, Weiss D, Zumpf K, et al. Optimal prenatal opioid use disorder care is associated with improved pregnancy outcomes. Poster session. Society for Maternal-Fetal Medicine 42nd Annual Pregnancy Meeting. Virtual. February 5, 2022.