CHICAGO — A surge in US infants born with symptoms of withdrawal from heroin or strong prescription painkillers is driven largely by rising drug use among women in rural areas, a new study found.
The problem in urban and rural areas was about the same in 2004 — about 1 in 1,000 births were affected. But by 2013, the rural rate had climbed to almost 8 in 1,000. In urban areas, it reached 5 per 1,000 births.
This article needs correction, as the 21% figure is not presented in the appropriate context. What the original source conveys is this: AMONG babies who are born with withdrawal symptoms (5-8 per 1000 births), 21% of them now come from rural counties. It is not 21% of all rural births (a truly shocking statistic), as the above article currently states. (JAMA Pediatrics link: http://jamanetwork.com/journals/jamapediatrics/fullarticle/2592302)
Okay I’m confused, is the rate 21% (210 in 1000 births) or 8 in 1000 births?