MDMA – ecstasy
 Methylendioxymethamphetamine (MDMA, "ecstasy") is the fastest growing drug used among young people in the United States. Despite an increasing body of empirical research, there are still many unresolved questions about its effects on humans.
In particular, preclinical studie suggest that fetal exposure to MDMA may have harmful effects on the developing child, yet there are no human studies to date which have developmentally followed MDMA exposed infants.
This study aims to assess preschool outcomes in MDMA exposed children and non-exposed children and the environment and maternal psychological correlates that may reduce or increase risk in MDMA-exposed children.
 Building on an established partnership between Case Western Reserve University, and community research partners at the University of East London, England, the study will continue to follow-up a cohort of MDMA, polydrug exposed children prospectively enrolled prenatally and seen through two-years of age in the United Kingdom.
Approximately 99 women, (33 MDMA users and 66 non-users) and their children will be seen through 2 years. MDMA and other drug exposures were determined by meternal self-report and frequency assessed at each trimester through clinical interview and hair analysis. Standardized questionnaires and assessment measuring maternal pysychological status, personality, social supports, attention, neuropsychological functioning, and cargiving behaviors will be administered, at follow-up and children will be assessed on standardized and experimental measures of growth, cognitive, motor, language, and behavoral outcomes annually.
Data will be evaluated descriptively, and through a series of longitudinal mixed model, hierarchical mutiple/logistic regression analyses, to describe the functioning of MDMA-exposed children and their mothers, and the relative impact of MDMA and other substance exposures on child outcomes, maternal psychological and neuropsychological functioning, and caregiving interactions. Changes over time and predictive models of infant risk, using HLM or structutal equation models, will be utilized. The proposed research will provide information about the early developmental sequelae of fetal MDMA/poydrug-exposure, maternal psychological status and caregiving behaviors which can guide the design of effective maternal drug treatment and child intervention programs.
 Publications from this research can be downloaded
from the publications section of this site in PDF format.
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