%0 Journal Article %J Addiction %D 2010 %T Methadone dose and neonatal abstinence syndrome-systematic review and meta-analysis %A Cleary, B %A Donnelly, Jean %A Strawbridge, Judith D %A Gallagher, Paul J %A Fahey, T %A Clarke, Mike %A Murphy, Deirdre J %K Cohort Studies %K Databases, Bibliographic %K Dose-Response Relationship, Drug %K Female %K Humans %K Infant, Newborn %K Methadone %K Narcotics %K Neonatal Abstinence Syndrome %K Opioid-Related Disorders %K Pregnancy %K Pregnancy Complications %K Prenatal Exposure Delayed Effects %K Randomized Controlled Trials as Topic %K Severity of Illness Index %X AIM: To determine if there is a relationship between maternal methadone dose in pregnancy and the diagnosis or medical treatment of neonatal abstinence syndrome (NAS). METHODS: PubMed, EMBASE, the Cochrane Library and PsychINFO were searched for studies reporting on methadone use in pregnancy and NAS (1966-2009). The relative risk (RR) of NAS was compared for methadone doses above versus below a range of cut-off points. Summary RRs and 95% confidence intervals (CI) were estimated using random effects meta-analysis. Sensitivity analyses explored the impact of limiting meta-analyses to prospective studies or studies using an objective scoring system to diagnose NAS. RESULTS: A total of 67 studies met inclusion criteria for the systematic review; 29 were included in the meta-analysis. Any differences in the incidence of NAS in infants of women on higher compared with lower doses were statistically non-significant in analyses restricted to prospective studies or to those using an objective scoring system to diagnose NAS. CONCLUSIONS: Severity of the neonatal abstinence syndrome does not appear to differ according to whether mothers are on high- or low-dose methadone maintenance therapy. %B Addiction %V 105 %P 2071-84 %8 2010 Dec %G eng %U http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/j.1360-0443.2010.03120.x/abstract %N 12 %R 10.1111/j.1360-0443.2010.03120.x