Children had smaller brain volumes and cortical surface areas after prenatal opioid maintenance therapy exposure

Abstract

AbstractAimThe studies have shown that infants with prenatal OMT exposure had smaller brain volumes than non‐exposed controls, but long‐term outcome data are lacking. We examined 5–13‐year‐old OMT‐exposed children with brain MRI and tested motor and visual‐motor functions and possible associations between brain morphology and outcome.MethodsTo this retrospective cohort study, we recruited 55 children with prenatal OMT exposure and 59 age‐ and gender‐matched controls. They were examined with brain MRI, Movement‐ABC and Beery‐VMI. MRI images were processed with the Free Surfer® software to obtain volumetrics and estimates of cortical surface area and thickness. We used a general linear regression model (GLM) to calculate group differences.ResultsThe children in the OMT group had smaller mean total intracranial volume (ICV), 1407 cm3 (CI 95% 1379–1434) versus 1450 cm3 (CI 95% 1423–1476) in the control group (p = 0.026). After adjusting for ICV, significant group differences persisted for volumes of amygdala, basal ganglia and mid‐posterior part of corpus callosum. Cortical surface area was smaller in the left caudal middle frontal gyrus and the right inferior parietal lobule in the OMT‐group. Visual‐motor function was significantly correlated with ICV.ConclusionPrenatal OMT exposure may alter early brain development with possible negative long‐term functional consequences.