Peahl AF, Morgan DM, Dalton VK, et al. - Researchers examined if and how opioid prescribing during pregnancy associate with new persistent opioid use in the year following delivery. For this nationwide retrospective cohort study, Optum’s de-identified Clinformatics Data Mart Database yielded data from 158,425 childbirths. Of these, 101,013 (63.8%) were vaginal birth and 57,412 (36.2%) were cesarean birth. Among all patients, an opioid prescription was made in 6.0% (9,429) during pregnancy. Filling an opioid in pregnancy was observed to be associated with having a non-delivery procedure in pregnancy and having an emergency room visit during pregnancy. New persistent opioid use (NPOU) developed in 4% (379) among women who received an opioid in pregnancy. NPOU was observed to be associated with the following factors utmost: receiving an opioid prescription during pregnancy and filling a peripartum opioid prescription (1-week prior to 3-days post-discharge). Although having a procedure during pregnancy was linked with increased receipt of an opioid prescription, it was also linked with decreased NPOU. These findings suggest a higher likelihood to experience new persistent opioid use among women who receive an opioid prescription during pregnancy. They emphasize maternity care providers to balance pain management in pregnancy with potential risks of opioids. .