Numerous historical records and evidence suggest that drug use is not a phenomenon solely of recent times. The development of medicine influenced the understanding of the effects of drugs on the body, the physical and psychological dependence was defined, alongside the concepts of tolerance and the withdrawal syndrome. The growing interest of experts in the field of addiction is followed with an inflow of new proposals of numerous definitions for both addiction and psychoactive substances. From the current state, it is clear that in all definitions present, addiction is described as a craving for consumption of psychoactive substances, while all the definitions of psychoactive substances understand ingredients of natural or synthetic origin, with the ability to cause changes in mental and/or physical condition. In addition to the division of psychoactive substances to natural and chemically created (classification by origin), there is a classification according to the effect of the substances on the central nervous system, which goes as follows: psychodepressors, psychostimulants and hallucinogens. Consumption of psychoactive substances, regardless of which group they belong to, is a direct cause to various side effects. Primarily, they cause health problems, but these are often followed with social and socio-economic problems. Growing incidence of drug abuse increases the possibility of highly volatile pregnancies due to the prenatal effects of teratogenic agents on the unborn child. When using, the substance passes through the placenta, into the child’s blood stream causing various problems. A neonatal abstinence syndrome is a clinical diagnosis in infants of addicted mothers, and is manifested as the underdevelopment of gastrointestinal, respiratory and central nervous system, as well as the vasomotoric disorders and changes on the skin, usually in the first 48 hours of life. The manifestation of symptoms depends on the concentration of opiates in the mother's bloodstream. In child care, the specialists involved come from a wide range of areas, all with the combined aim to solve complex problems and ensure adequate care for the child. The treatment aims to involve parents in as many activities under the mentioned care due to the possible positive effects of contact and presence of a parent on the child suffering from the neonatal abstinence syndrome. Nurses must possess a wide set of skills, high expertise and professional attitude and through empathy they can achieve cooperation and a better understanding with parents, which can directly aid the process of recovery.