The care of alcohol- and drug-affected infants.

When addicted families remain untreated, infants and children born into and raised by these families are at high risk of abuse and neglect. Early intervention appears to mitigate neurodevelopmental damage caused by drugs and alcohol. It is unclear whether the high risk of abuse and neglect in these families can also be modified. Early intervention and ongoing supervision may be costly, but the long-term costs will be much higher if the multigenerational cycle of both diseases is not broken. A multidisciplinary team approach is essential to free children from the double burden of substance abuse and its frequent consequence, child abuse.