Investigation of 89 children born by drug-dependent mothers. II. Follow-up 1-10 years after birth.

72 of 89 children born by opiate- and methadone-addicted mothers were reinvestigated 1 to 10 years after birth. Only 25% were found to by physically, mentally and behaviorally normal. 56% were hyperactive, aggressive, with a lack of concentration and social inhibition. 10% had a severely and 11% a moderately impaired psycho-motor development mainly due to deprivation. 43% of the children had been removed from their mothers by the courts. The average number of shifts from one milieu to another was 6 per child with an upper range of 30 shifts for some of the children. The average number of shifts from one caregiver to another was 5 with an upper range of 11. These findings indicate that there is an urgent need for politicians, social welfare and health personnel to reexamine their roles in helping these children, who will otherwise develop into a new generation of social loosers.