Injectable, Extended-Release Buprenorphine Feasible for Opioid Use Disorder During Pregnancy

FRIDAY, March 20, 2026 (HealthDay News) -- Injectable, extended-release buprenorphine is safe and effective in pregnant women with opioid use disorder (OUD), according to a study published online March 16 in JAMA Internal Medicine.T. John Winhusen, Ph.D., from the University of Cincinnati, and colleagues evaluated the effectiveness and safety of extended-release buprenorphine versus sublingual buprenorphine for OUD in pregnancy through 12 months postpartum. The analysis included 140 adults with OUD and a singleton pregnancy of 6 to 30 weeks of gestational age seen at 13 outpatient cross-disciplinary peripartum OUD treatment sites.The researchers found that illicit opioid abstinence was higher during pregnancy for participants randomly assigned to extended-release versus sublingual buprenorphine (82.5 versus 72.6 percent). The groups were similar with respect to postpartum abstinence rates (60.2 versus 59.5 percent). There were fewer serious adverse events during pregnancy (8.7 versus 26.8 percent) and postpartum (6.0 versus 18.6 percent) among those receiving extended-release buprenorphine. There were more nonserious adverse events deemed medication-related for extended-release participants during pregnancy (26.1 versus 7.0 percent). Infants did not differ in the need for opioid treatment based on mothers' treatment assignment to extended-release versus sublingual buprenorphine (30.2 versus 26.5 percent; relative risk, 1.14; 98 percent confidence interval, 0.54 to 1.99; P = 0.64)."We knew that injectable extended-release buprenorphine leads to superior rates of illicit opioid abstinence in nonpregnant adults, but there had been no completed randomized clinical trial testing its use during pregnancy," Winhusen said in a statement. "It is exciting to share the results of this trial, which have immediate clinical application: this longer-acting medication can safely and more effectively support treatment and recovery in pregnant patients."Several authors disclosed ties to the biopharmaceutical industry.Abstract/Full Text.Sign up for our weekly HealthDay newsletter

Injectable, Extended-Release Buprenorphine Feasible for Opioid Use Disorder During Pregnancy

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