Improving Assessment, Treatment, and Understanding of Pregnant Women With Opioid Use Disorder: The Importance of Life Context

Rates of opioid use disorder (OUD) among pregnant women are increasing precipitously. Much attention is being devoted to the biomedical mechanisms underlying harmful maternal and child outcomes of opioid-exposed pregnancies. Yet, despite the documented vulnerability of these women and the treatment barriers they face, little research and clinical attention are being directed toward the life-context factors that affect their health. We describe how life context affects pregnant women with OUD and explain that a socioecological, woman-centered research and practice approach that includes systematic assessment of life context is necessary to improve the health and well-being of this population.