IMPACT OF MATERNAL CRACK USE ON CHILDREN IN JAMAICA

产前神经行为影响的科学报告

Scientific reports of the neurobehavioral impact of prenatal crack/cocaine exposure on newborns and infants have led to considerable speculation about the long-term negative consequences for the health and development of so-called 'crack kinds'. Others, however, challenge the notion that crack-exposed children are doomed and caution that predictions of devastating long-term outcomes may be premature at best. Polydrug use and the conditions of poverty (poor nutrition, shelter and social support) that most of the research subjects have brought to pregnancy have impeded attempts to isolate the effects of crack/cocaine. The identification of long-term effects is even further confounded by the postnatal environment in which continued use of drugs by the mother may be associated with child abuse and neglect. This study proposes to explore, describe and compare the lives of children whose mothers are or were crack users, employing an ethnographic design with community-based observations and interviews. Using established contacts with crack users, the proposed project will monitor 24-30 dependent children (0-16) of current or former crack users for a period of nine months to (1) describe and analyze the life histories of children in relation to their mothers' use of crack; (2) identify the social conditions to which children of crack users are exposed and the children's responses to those conditions; (3) explore the informal and formal social support provided to children of crack using women; and (4) identify the major problems faced by the children and their caregivers. The results of this study will provide the groundwork for a larger, clinical/anthropological study of the effects of prenatal crack exposure on infant and child health and development.