New today published in the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) is the largest-to-date study on the relationship between Marijuana use in pregnancy and poor pregnancy outcomes. The study used high quality data and found a direct connection between Marijuana use in pregnancy and preterm (early) births, babies needing admission to the intensive care unit (NICU) and babies born with lower birth weights. The study was led by Dr. Greg Marchand of the Marchand Institute for Minimally Invasive Surgery, and is the result of over 8 months of work at this not-for-profit institute by fourteen authors, including obstetricians, pediatricians, researchers, and epidemiologists. The data is particularly meaningful because the researchers were able to use the latest evidence to draw a direct link between Marijuana usage and several poor pregnancy outcomes, whereas previous studies did not find enough evidence to do so. In addition to recreational use, many mothers are dependent on Marijuana for effective treatment of serious medical conditions such as chronic pain and anxiety. This new data may make some mothers consider more closely their usage of Marijuana while pregnant. While increases in many adverse pregnancy outcomes were found in the study, there was no finding of any connection between Marijuana and any birth defect.
The full article can be found on JAMA’s website here: https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jamanetworkopen/fullarticle/2788451
Article Full Name: “Birth Outcomes of Neonates exposed to Marijuana in Utero: A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis”
Type of Article: Meta-analysis (This is a research paper that combines the data from many other papers that have been published to attempt to show a significant finding. Advanced statistical techniques are used to appropriately combine the data from many studies and careful attention is paid to be sure the included studies were performed correctly before utilizing their data. These studies are generally undertaken with the help of an epidemiologist, or expert in statistics.)
Quotes from Dr. Marchand:
“With the new data that has come out over the last five years, there’s really not any doubt at this point that smoking Marijuana during pregnancy is associated with preterm births, lower birth weights, and more admissions to the NICU.”
“This new data will force some difficult decisions for pregnant women dependent on Marijuana for treatment of serious medical conditions like anxiety and chronic pain.”
About the Marchand Institute for Minimally Invasive Surgery:
The Marchand Institute for Minimally Invasive Surgery is a research and educational not-for-profit corporation and functional “Think-Tank” for the advancement of women’s health and minimally invasive gynecologic surgery. The institute is located in Mesa, Arizona. The institute adheres to the highest levels of quality for their research and maintains an extremely diverse environment in the workplace. www.MarchandInstitute.org
About The Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA):
JAMA: The Journal of the American Medical Association is a peer-reviewed medical journal published 48 times a year by the American Medical Association. It publishes original research, reviews, and editorials covering all aspects of biomedicine. JAMA is considered to be one of the most prestigious medical journals in the world, with a 2020 impact factor of 56.272, ranking it 3rd out of 169 journals in the Medicine Category. www.JamaNetwork.com
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SOURCE Marchand Institute for Minimally Invasive Surgery
