Substance use and health risks for pregnant and postpartum women
Official title: Substance use in PRegnancy and the mOrbidity Mortality rISk Environment (PROMISE)
Funded at Emory University · NIH-11325794 · Data updated 2026-11-12
This project maps when, where, and why pregnant and postpartum women who use drugs face health harms to guide better supports and services.
Quick facts
| Grant type | R01 grant |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | Emory University NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (Atlanta, United States) |
| Project start | July 1, 2024 |
| Project end | April 30, 2029 |
| Funding year | 2026 |
| Award (this year) | $702,932 |
| NIH project number | 5R01DA059182-03 |
| Project ID | NIH-11325794 on NIH RePORTER |
Who could benefit from this research
✓Could help
Women who are pregnant or within the first year after delivery and who use drugs (including opioids and amphetamines) are the primary focus for this work.
✕Less likely to help
People who are not pregnant or postpartum, those who do not use drugs, and men are unlikely to benefit directly from this project.
What this research studies
If you are pregnant or recently gave birth and use drugs, this research looks at who experiences harms, where those harms cluster, and when during pregnancy and the first year after birth they happen. The team will combine health records, death data, and other sources and use advanced mapping and statistical models to find hotspots and high-risk time windows. Researchers will also look at social and environmental factors that may increase risks so they can point to targets for future services. Findings are meant to help public health teams tailor supports to reach people at the right place and time.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: Could help target prevention and treatment services to reduce overdoses, complications, and maternal deaths among pregnant and postpartum women who use drugs.
How similar studies have gone: Researchers have used risk-environment approaches and spatial analyses in general drug-using populations, but applying these methods specifically to pregnant and postpartum women is novel.
Where this research is happening
-
Emory University
Atlanta, United States Active
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Cooper, Hannah Lf — Emory University
- Study coordinator: Cooper, Hannah Lf
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About this research
- This is an active NIH-funded research project — typically early-stage science, not a clinical trial accepting patient enrollment.
- Some NIH-funded labs run parallel clinical studies or seek volunteers for related work. To check, contact the principal investigator or institution listed above.
- For full project details, budget, and progress reports, visit the official NIH RePORTER page.