Developmental Effects of Prenatal Cocaine Exposure

Univ Of Med/Dent Nj-R W Johnson Med Sch, Piscataway NJ

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Abstract

[unreadable] DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): This is a revision of continuation grant 2 R01 DA07109, "Developmental Effects of Prenatal Cocaine Exposure", our longitudinal study of the impact of prenatal cocaine exposure on children's development. We have examined the functioning of the children in our sample in a large number of domains at regular intervals from birth through 8 1/2 years of age. Previous findings showed inhibitory control and emotional regulation to be most adversely affected by prenatal cocaine exposure when other prenatal substance exposures, neonatal medical risk, and environmental risk were controlled. At the same time, relatively limited effects were found for cognitive abilities. This specificity in the deficits from cocaine exposure has been apparent from infancy through the oldest age (6 years) for which our data have been examined. For this continuation, we propose to observe the children from pre- to early adolescence (9 1/2 to 14 years of age). We are interested in determining whether the specificity of cocaine effects we found at younger ages continues to be present at the older ages. We also are interested in examining the effects of cocaine exposure on measures of greater importance for pro- to early adolescence such as peer relationships, psychological adjustment, and initiation of high-risk behaviors like substance use, delinquency, and unsafe sex. While cocaine exposure may have an adverse impact on these outcomes, we expect much of this effect will be indirect through difficulties in inhibitory control/emotion regulation. Since most children will go through puberty during this age period, we also will monitor sexual maturation in order to examine possible moderating effects of these changes on outcome. As in all our previous work, at the same time that we examine the effect of cocaine exposure on pre- to early adolescent behavior, we also will examine the effects of other prenatal substance exposures, neonatal medical risk, and environmental risk. Thus, the major objectives of this continuation are to: (1) confirm that the specificity of deficits from cocaine exposure found previously continue to be expressed into pre- to early adolescence; (2) examine pre- to early adolescent age change in the behavioral domains previously studied and the new areas important for this age period as a function of cocaine exposure and the other predictors; and (3) evaluate longitudinal models that postulate a mediating role of inhibitory control/emotional regulation on outcome.