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The Project

The overall aim of the Canadian Perinatal Opioid Project (CPOP) is to develop a national public health surveillance system to look at perinatal opioid exposure among all mother-infant pairs and investigate associated impacts on maternal and child health in Canada.

The Project

The overall aim of the Canadian Perinatal Opioid Project (CPOP) is to develop a national public health surveillance system to look at perinatal opioid exposure among all mother-infant pairs and investigate associated impacts on maternal and child health in Canada.

Our Why

Why are we doing this work?

Perinatal opioid use affects thousands of Canadian families each year and is a growing public health concern. Existing Canadian research shows that:

8%

of pregnancies in Manitoba involve prescription opioid exposure

5%

of births in Ontario have prenatal opioid exposure (e.g., unregulated opioids, opioids for pain, treatment for opioid use disorder)

30%

of births in rural/remote Ontario have prenatal opioid exposure

Addressing Gaps in Perinatal Opioid Care and Research

Some types of opioid use in pregnancy can lead to health complications for pregnant people and their children. For example, existing research has shown a higher risk of health complications following prenatal opioid use/exposure among:

pregnant people
(e.g., communicable disease, toxicity, mortality)

newborns
(e.g., preterm birth, fetal growth restriction, neonatal opioid withdrawal syndrome)

children
(e.g., re-hospitalization, neurodevelopmental concerns)

This has concerning implications for maternal and child health. However, little is known about perinatal opioid use in other Canadian provinces and nationally. Currently, there are also no federal or provincial guidelines to support the health of pregnant people who use opioids, or children with prenatal opioid exposure beyond the neonatal period. This leaves service-providers, healthcare practitioners, and impacted communities across Canada with little information to inform harm reduction and treatment services.

That’s where we come in!

CPOP is a collaboration between 5 Canadian provinces – Alberta, British Columbia, Manitoba, Ontario, and Saskatchewan – all of which have de-identified population-based health data for all mother-infant pairs. This allows us to identify perinatal opioid use at a provincial and national level and follow mothers and children over time to investigate short- and long-term health outcomes.

CPOP was designed to bridge gaps in knowledge about perinatal opioid use through data harmonization, community engagement, and knowledge translation (like through this website!). Information generated from CPOP will:

  • address critical knowledge gaps in the epidemiology of perinatal opioid use and the short- and long-term impacts on maternal and child health
  • inform health and social supports
  • support the overall goal of improving the health and well-being of women/people and children affected by perinatal opioid exposure

Stay connected with us as CPOP develops!

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