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Cross-national Comparison of Prenatal Methamphetamine Exposure on Infant and Early Child Physical Growth: A Natural Experiment

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Abstract

The current study seeks to compare the effects of prenatal methamphetamine exposure (PME) on infant and child physical growth between the USA and New Zealand (NZ). This cross-national comparison provides a unique opportunity to examine the potential impact of services provided to drug using mothers on child health. The longitudinal Infant Development, Environment and Lifestyle study of PME from birth to 36 months was conducted in the USA and NZ. The US cohort included 204 children with PME and 212 non-PME matched comparisons (NPME); the NZ cohort included 108 children with PME and 115 NPME matched comparisons. Latent growth curve models were used to examine effects of PME, country of origin, and the country × PME interaction on growth in length/height and weight. In regard to length/height, PME and country of origin were associated with initial length and growth over time. There was also a significant interaction effect, such that children with PME in the USA were shorter at birth than children with PME in NZ after controlling for other prenatal exposures, infant set, socioeconomic status, and maternal height. In regard to weight, there was only an effect of country of origin. Effects of PME on infant and child growth were shown to differ across countries, with exposed children in NZ faring better than exposed children in the USA. Implications for prevention programs and public policy are discussed.

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Notes

  1. It is important to note that this decline does not represent declining height, but rather a decline in height relative to the population of children worldwide.

  2. Models were also run with cocaine- and opiate-exposed infants removed, and predictor/covariate results were nearly identical. As such, the analyses with the complete sample were presented and interpreted.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Brown Center for the Study of Children at Risk, Alpert Medical School, Women and Infants Hospital of RI, 50 Holden St, Providence, RI, USA

    Beau Abar, Linda L. LaGasse, Sheri DellaGrotta, Lynne M. Dansereau, Tara Wilcox & Barry M. Lester

  2. Department of Psychological Medicine, The University of Auckland, Auckland, New Zealand

    Trecia Wouldes

  3. John A. Burns School of Medicine, Department of Pediatrics, University of Hawaii, Pearl City, Hawaii, USA

    Chris Derauf & Charles R. Neal

  4. Department of Psychology, The University of Tulsa, Tulsa, USA

    Elana Newman

  5. Blank Hospital Regional Child Protection Center, Iowa Health, Des Moines, USA

    Rizwan Shah

  6. Department of Pediatrics, LABioMed Institute at Harbor-UCLA Medical Center, Los Angeles, USA

    Lynne M. Smith

  7. Family Science Department–Center on Young Adult Health and Development, University of Maryland School of Public Health, College Park, USA

    Amelia M. Arria

  8. Intramural Research Program, National Institute on Drug Abuse, Bethesda, MD, 20892, USA

    Marilyn A. Huestis

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  1. Beau Abar
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  2. Linda L. LaGasse
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Correspondence to Beau Abar.

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Abar, B., LaGasse, L.L., Wouldes, T. et al. Cross-national Comparison of Prenatal Methamphetamine Exposure on Infant and Early Child Physical Growth: A Natural Experiment. Prev Sci 15, 767–776 (2014). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11121-013-0431-5

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11121-013-0431-5

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