A Short Note On Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder

The science behind FAS is quite simple; as it is known that alcohol has a damaging effect on the body, it has similar consequences on the fetus. Since the fetus is constantly developing, the alcohol causes more serious defects to the unborn child. Alcohol exposure to a fetus is known as a teratogen. “Teratogens are substances or conditions that disrupt typical development in offspring as a result of gestational exposure and cause birth defects.” (Wilson & Fraser, 1977). Although the exposure to alcohol causes problems in the fetus, studies have shown that it may not accurately be the alcohol in the mother’s system that causes these defects, rather the byproducts that form when the body metabolizes the alcohol. This can lead to a decrease in brain cells, abnormal location of neurons, and gross malformation to the brain. Since alcohol causes this central nervous system damage, it is classified as a neurobehavioral teratogen, which is a group of teratogens that cause brain damage and modify behaviors. (Riley & Vorhees, 1986). The CNS damage is the primary defect due to alcohol and it is quite common to have these damages without any physical abnormalities. The more alcohol that is consumed the more birth defects that will arise in the

According to Seaver, Fetal Alcohol Syndrome (FAS) is birth defects causing learning, and behavioral problems in individuals whose mothers drank alcohol during pregnancy. This disorder is very serious, yet it is recognized as one of the most preventable. This causes major issues, when something so serious could be prevented but is not. Fetal Alcohol Syndrome is a problem because it leaves a permanent effect on the unborn child, but some solutions could be educating women and putting up more informational posters and warning labels on products.

“Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder (FASD) is an umbrella term describing the range of effects that can occur in an individual whose mother drank alcohol during pregnancy. These effects may include physical, mental, behavioral, and/or learning disabilities with possible lifelong implications” (HHS, 2005). FASD refers to conditions such as: fetal alcohol syndrome including partial FAS, fetal alcohol effects (FAE), alcohol related neurodevelopment disorder, alcohol-related birth defects. The conditions that are involved with FASD can range from mild to severe and it is not likely that two people share the exact same symptoms.

The purpose of this study was to identify pronounced deficits in the language of children with FASD. There were fifty children in this study. 27 of the children (10 female) with FASD, and 23 typically developing control children (9 females), ages 5-13. The children with FASD had been diagnosed with an alcohol related disorder. This study analyzes language in children with FASD in order to identify deficits and diagnostic measures for these deficits. Two measures were used to test the children on language ability: the Comprehensive Receptive and Expressive Vocabulary Test- Second Edition (CREVT-2) and the Test of Language Development- Third Edition (TOLD-3). The tests were administered and scored. There were no significant differences between the children’s results obtained from the receptive and expressive subtests. However, overall, children with FASD scored lower on the CREVT-2 than the control group. Children with FASD also had lower scores than the control group on relational vocabulary, sentence imitation, word ordering, grammatical comprehension, and malapropisms, which were tested in the TOLD-3 test. Research has been done on children prenatally exposed to alcohol, with and without FASD diagnosis. It is typical for these children to be delayed in fundamental language skills, acquisition, comprehension, speech development,

Fetal Alcohol Syndrome (FAS) is a pattern of mental, physical, and behavioral defects that may develop in the unborn child when its mother drinks during pregnancy. These defects occur primarily during the first trimester when the teratogenic effects of the alcohol have the greatest effect on the developing organs. The symptoms associated with FAS have been observed for many centuries, but it was not until 1968 that Lemoine and his associates formally described these symptoms in the scientific literature, and again in 1973 when Jones and associates designated a specific pattern of altered growth and dysmorphogenesis as the Fetal Alcohol Syndrome (Rostand, p. 302). The set of abnormalities characterized by Jones

Every year, about 40,000 babies are born with symptoms of prenatal alcohol exposure (Lupton, 2003). This number will only continue to grow if the risk of drinking alcohol while pregnant is not brought to the people’s attention. When the mother takes a drink of alcohol, so does the fetus, which will cause physical and behavioral problems after birth. Fetal Alcohol Syndrome (FAS) is completely preventable and irreversible. FAS awareness and prevention is important; expectant mothers need to know the background information about the syndrome, some common symptoms, signs, and treatments, and the mental and physical abnormalities that will occur because of this lifelong syndrome.

Fetal Alcohol Syndrome (FAS) is a disorder that occurs when a mother consumes alcohol while pregnant. Individuals with FAS may face many problems such as, bad vision, hearing impairments, memory difficulty, communicative hurdles, and much more (Bergen & Yu, 2012). In began in 1981 when expecting mothers were advised not to drink while pregnant (Alcohol Policies Project, n.d). However, is 1995 4 times more mothers were consuming alcohol in comparison to a few years earlier in 1991 (Alcohol Policies Project, n.d). In addition, 52 percent of women ages 18-34 claimed to have been consuming alcohol while pregnant (Alcohol Policies Project, n.d). The reason for a mothers decision to drink is unknown, it could possibly be that mothers have read reports

Fetal Alcohol Syndrome (FAS) refers to a group of physical and mental birth defects resulting from a women’s drinking alcohol heavily or at crucial stages during pregnancy. Fetal Alcohol Syndrome was first named and treated in the late 1960's. This condition results from the toxic effect of alcohol and its chemical factors on the developing fetus. FAS is the leading cause of mental retardation occurring in 1 out of every 750 births. The frequency of FAS occurs about 1.9 times out of every 1000 births according to the latest figures, and minor effects can be seen in up to 20% of pregnancies per year. This number changes drastically for women who are clearly alcoholics. As high as 29 children out of every 1000 births will suffer from FAS

FAS, also known as Fetal Alcohol Syndrome Is a condition the occurs in a female's off spring when the mother drinks alcohol during any time during her pregnancy. What happens is that the baby absorbs the alcohol through the mother's placenta. There the alcohol can enter the fetus blood stream slowing poisoning the fetus. FAS can lead behavioral problems, speech problems, facial deformities, as well as learning problems.

Alcohol is a teratogen, meaning that is it a substance capable of interfering with the development of an embryo or fetus, causing birth defects (Teratogen). Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders, or FASD, is a non-diagnostic umbrella term describing the varying range of effects that can occur as a result of prenatal alcohol exposure. These may include physical, mental, behavioral, and learning disabilities, or a combination of these (Facts). A number of factors are involved in determining the outcome of the child, including the dose and pattern of drinking, the timing of exposure, genetic factors, the nutritional status of the mother, and the use of other toxic substances . Fetal Alcohol Syndrome, or FAS, lies on the extreme end of the

Alcohol-related birth defects that may be present to those born with FAS can easily be identified because of the cluster of characteristic features involving facial appearance, growth and brain damage. Children born to mothers that drink heavily in pregnancy may also have serious congenital birth defects such as :

Also having specialized teaching strategies that provide consistent routine, allowing students to practice new skills would also help students with FASD. Having family support groups at home would be one result that can be applied to help students with FASD. Family support groups would provide children with FASD better support, knowledge and help with coping and managing their deficits. Also, classes to help parents better care for their children with FASD would be another result that can be applied for children with FASD. These classes would allow parents to have a better understanding on their child and what it is they need to better care for them. Nutrition supplements for pregnant woman and postnatal supplement for their children would be one result that can be applied. Nutrition supplements would provide the mother with the right vitamins and supplements a mother needs to take care of herself during her pregnancy. Postnatal supplements help support a healthy pregnancy and baby’s developing when taken before and during pregnancy. Behavioral interventions for affect children would be another result that can be applied. Behavioral interventions to children with FASD can help stop problem behaviors and it can also prevent behavioral

Perhaps the most noticeable difference between children with FAS and those who don’t is their size. Children with FAS are substantially smaller than ordinary children. Their limbs and internal organs grow at a snail’s pace in comparison to the norm. The child’s head is no exception. The head grows very slowly this implies slow brain growth, and with slow brain growth mental retardation is a very real problem. Interestingly enough, their small size isn’t a lack in growth hormone

A research study that was done by Sarah N. Mattson, Katherine E. Calarco and Aimee R. Lang has proven that children that have been exposed to alcohol have a slower reaction time and a lower accuracy to respond correctly to a set of stimuli that was presented. The children were evaluated using a paradigm consisting of three conditions: visual focus, auditory focus, and auditory-visual shift of attention (Mattson, 2006). The result concluded that children with FAS have a deficiency in visually focused attention and a deformity in maintaining auditory

I spoke with the two special education teachers at my school, one is teaching K-3 and the other is 4-5. Both have experience working with students with FASD, our school currently has one student with an official diagnosis, but many more we all suspect have FASD.