New research shows that the number of pregnant women being prescribed opioid painkillers is skyrocketing, despite the fact that doctors are unsure of the risks to developing fetuses.
A study published last week in Obstetrics and Gynecology showed that in 2007 nearly 23 percent of the 1.1 million pregnant women enrolled in Medicaid filled an opioid prescription, up 18.5 percent from 2000. The study's lead author, Rishi J. Desai at Boston's Brigham and Women's Hospital, expected to "see some increase in trend, but not this magnitude," he said. "One in five women using opioids during pregnancy is definitely surprising."
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