Chronic pain affects approximately 10% of the United States, and is more common in women. The fear of neonatal opioid withdrawal syndrome (NOWS) in opioid-exposed infants has led to potential undertreatment of chronic pain in women of reproductive age. However, there is currently little evidence as to the negative effects of unmanaged chronic maternal pain on offspring development. By utilizing a novel, clinically-relevant model of persistent neuropathic pain with or without concurrent oxycodone exposure, we investigate the developmental and behavioral consequences of maternal pain and perinatal opioid exposure on male and female offspring, with a particular focus on future drug use liability. We hypothesize that maternal pain and/or perinatal opioid exposure will induce neurodevelopmental delays and promote addiction-like behavior in an intravenous self-administration paradigm. Our preliminary results indicate a neurodevelopmental delay in male offspring born to mothers in pain. Furthermore, male rats exposed to both maternal pain and perinatal oxycodone show increased intake of high-dose oxycodone, suggesting increased addiction-like behavior and shifts in tolerance and sensitivity to oxycodone based on prenatal exposure. To identify the causes of this difference, we will investigate maternal behavior, neurodevelopment, and expression/sensitivity of the mu opioid receptor in male and female offspring. This abstract was presented at the American Physiology Summit 2026 and is only available in HTML format. There is no downloadable file or PDF version. The Physiology editorial board was not involved in the peer review process.
Harder et al. (Fri,) studied this question.