[31 women with drug problems got children--what happened after that?].
BACKGROUND
The intention of this study was to increase the knowledge concerning the rehabilitation of women with drug problems after the birth of a child and to find out how the children developed.


METHODS
A follow-up study of 31 women, former drug and alcohol abusers and their children, 19 girls and 12 boys born in 1982-1983. The first survey took place when the children were 2-3 years of age, then when they were 7-9 and at last when they were 15-17. The biological mothers, foster or adoptive mothers, the children and their teachers were interviewed.


RESULTS
The women got more support and control during the pregnancy than afterwards. Most of the mothers became single. Women with the shortest drug history, a good social network and a stable partner without drug problems kept the care of their children. By the first survey (1985), seven children had been placed in foster homes, in the second (1992) two further children had been taken away from their mothers, and in the third (1999) only one third of the children were living with their biological mothers. Most of the children did well at school and in their families, had friends and leisure activities despite still living by their mothers or in foster/adoption homes. None of the youngsters had been in conflict with the law or were drug abusers, but every second teenage girl needed psychological support. Children who had been stable by their drug-free biological mothers functioned best.


CONCLUSIONS
Mothers with drug problems do not get sufficient attention after the delivery and when the children grow up. A supporting family should be brought in contact with mother and child after the delivery. Under special circumstances pregnancy can be a positive turning point for women with drug problems.
Sundfaer
A
A
Barne- og ungdomspsykiatrisk poliklinikk Ullevål sykehus 0407 Oslo. bupull@online.no
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000437:Alcoholism / Q000150:complications* / Q000523:psychology / Q000534:rehabilitation; D002648:Child; D002652:Child Behavior; D002657:Child Development; D002675:Child, Preschool; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D007231:Infant, Newborn; D008297:Male; D009664:Norway; D011247:Pregnancy; D011248:Pregnancy Complications / Q000523:psychology; D012944:Social Support; D019966:Substance-Related Disorders / Q000150:complications* / Q000523:psychology / Q000534:rehabilitation