The Effects of Ecstasy on a Fetus

Consumption of the illicit drug ecstasy by pregnant women may contribute to a variety of cognitive disorders and birth defects in their children. But research has been limited and authorities believe more studies are necessary to confirm the connection.

Significance

• Pregnant women who consume the illegal street drug ecstasy (MDMA) appear to place the health of their unborn baby at significant risk. A 2001 study conducted by the Children's Hospital Research Foundation and the University of Cincinnati College of Medicine found that use of the drug during pregnancy may result in long-term learning and memory difficulties.

Effects

• Tests on animals have shown damage to developing fetuses in what would be the equivalent of the third trimester in humans, but the level of danger to younger embryos is unknown. "The effects of MDMA on animals earlier in development are unclear; therefore, more research is needed to determine what the effects of MDMA are on the developing human nervous system," says the National Institute on Drug Abuse.

Defects

• The March of Dimes suggests that usage of ecstasy during pregnancy may result in congenital heart defects in a newborn baby. The organization says that small, limited studies indicate that female children who have been exposed to ecstasy within the womb are more likely to develop the skeletal condition known as clubfoot.