School-age children with fetal alcohol spectrum disorders (FASD) have complex clinical profiles and

Many alcoholics are so preoccupied with their addictions, that issues and activities that were once of interest to them, are no longer a concern. The alcoholic then becomes oblivious to his responsibilities for his or her children. Children of alcoholics often suffer from neglect. According to the Children of Alcoholics Foundation, each year “1.2 million children are confirmed by state agencies as being victims of child neglect. Forty percent of these cases involve alcohol or drugs. This suggests that an estimated

Warnings and dangers of alcohol abuse have been recognized since biblical times. “Behold, thou shalt conceive and bear a son: and now drink no wine or strong drinks” (Holy Bible, Judges 13:7, 1970, p.261). There was even mention from Aristotle who noted “that foolish, drunken and harebrained women most often bring forth children like unto themselves, morose and languid.” (Buxton, 2004, p.42). Alcohol abuse is not easily recognized by a mother or easily identified at birth. Some mothers continue to drink because they are unaware they have actually conceived a child. It is important that once pregnancy is

Although throughout the United States activist and educational campaigns have flooded U.S citizens with education on the detrimental effects of maternal alcohol consumption, women are still continuing to consume alcohol while pregnant. Fifty three percent of non-pregnant woman drink alcohol, and despite health warnings, twelve percent of pregnant mothers in the United States still consume alcohol (Pruett &Waterman & Caughey, 2013, p. 62). Fetal alcohol exposure is also believed to be widely underreported in the United States (Pruett et al., 2013, p. 66). Current research concludes that there is no safe level of alcohol consumption, nor a safe time during gestation for alcohol consumption to take place (National Organization on Fetal Alcohol Syndrome [NOFAS], 2014). Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders (FASD) is an umbrella term used for the various conditions that maternal alcohol consumption causes. Although each case of FASD can present differently, cognitive disabilities, facial deformities, and growth retention are a few of the hallmark adverse effects that alcohol has when it enters fetal circulation (Paley & O’Connor, 2011, p. 64). The United States is impacted economically by these debilitating conditions as well, as it costs our nation $746 million dollars annually to care for these children (Bhuvaneswar, Chang, Epstein & Stern, 2007, p. 3). Nurses in America, and across the globe have a key role in helping to eliminate, and minimize adverse effects of these conditions

In the field of speech language pathology, children may come onto a caseload with an identification of fetal alcohol spectrum disorder. About 0.5 to 3 in every 1,000 live births is a child impaired by maternal alcohol use during pregnancy. Fetal alcohol spectrum disorder has a strong correlation with language delays and language impairments. This research paper will review the relationship between fetal alcohol spectrum disorder and language delays or impairments.

As a result of pregnant women drinking, there have been a profuse amount of children born with Fetal Alcohol Syndrome. Armstrong and Abel confirm that it wasn’t until 1973

“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 use of illicit drugs and abuse of alcohol exact a steep price from our society. Substance abuse is a factor in many serious ills such as crime. More upsetting, however, is the affects that it has on children born affected from their dependent mothers. The National Institute on Drug Abuse estimates that 60 percent of women of childbearing age consume alcoholic beverages despite the fact that alcohol consumption during pregnancy is implicated in a wide range of birth defects and developmental disabilities, including mental retardation, physical abnormalities, and visual and auditory impairments. (Nevitt, 1996)

This variable was calculated as the average absolute alcohol intake by the subject per day as measured in a standard oz.. These figures were then tabulated and calculated on a daily basis for the entire term of the woman’s pregnancy. The Dependant Variable identified within this research study was in the form of a parent questionnaire referred to as the CBCL. The CBCL is appropriate for children from the ages of 4 to 16 years old when assessing a child’s behavior and has been used extensively in previous research. Given the demographics of the sample set, it is important to point out that the CBCL is written at a 5th grade reading

All communities nationwide, and especially high-risk women in their childbearing years, need better information about the dangers of drinking during pregnancy. But most health care providers are unfamiliar with and untrained in the issues of substance abuse

is affected, and to what degree, by the prenatal exposure to alcohol (Berhow 364). The most

During both my internship and my pre-internship classroom experience, I have had students with suspected Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder (FASD). One was in the process of being diagnosed with Alcohol Related Neurodevelopmental Disorder, the other was suspected to have partial Fetal Alcohol Syndrome. Though both students were quite different, they did share some commonalities. Both had trouble with following directions and trouble with memory. I also had trouble reaching both in the classroom as they needed more individual instruction than I could give them. There were often times I felt like I was making no difference at all, which was devastating as a teacher. These students though the most challenging have made the most lasting impact

Behavioral malformations can include attention deficit or hyperactivity, as well as impaired adaptive behavior, social skills, and social communication.2 A range of affected behavior is evident, with any degree of general impairment possible in intelligence, reflex development, motor coordination, and hyperactivity of muscle.1 Core deficits that are found in a majority of cases of prenatal alcohol exposure include deficits in attention, learning, memory, emotional dysregulation, and executive functioning, which

A young offender with fetal alcohol spectrum disorder can be very vulnerable whether we realize it or not. The level of their comprehension can be lower than others without the disorder and can cause them to struggle with things that are simple to us like complying with law authority during an arrest. With that being said, Kaitlyn McLachlan, Ronald Roesch, Jodi L. Viljoen and Kevin S. Douglas did a study on young offenders with FASD in hopes to raise awareness of the necessity to aid the individuals. The research included reliable methods that would prove their intellectual and academic levels were highly lower than individuals without FASD. The four hypothesized that the young offenders with FASD would show more limited skills than the young offenders without FASD. Their results showed the young offenders with FASD scored significantly lower than the other young offenders, making their hypothesis correct. McLachlan, Roesch, Viljoen and Douglas proved that it would be significant to mark individuals with FASD as ones who would highly benefit from assistance.

Research has shown that a key element of working with prenatally-exposed children is providing education to parents and caregivers (Paley & O’Connor, 2009). Behavioral difficulties are often secondary to the effects of prenatal exposure to alcohol and other substances. Parents and caregivers often experience high levels of stress that is directly related to the unpredictable and challenging behaviors associated with prenatal exposure (Olson, Oti, Gelo, & Beck, 2009, Paley, O'Connor, Kogan, & Findlay, 2005). Parents, caregivers, teachers, and other adults often have negative perceptions of prenatally-affected children, often because the nature of the child or adolescent’s deficits are not well understood or identified (Paley, O'connor, Frankel,

The main theory is that “Prenatal exposure to alcohol is associated with fetal alcohol syndrome (FAS) as well as other alcohol- related neurodevelopmental disorders (ARND) that are expressed as developmental, disabilities, behavior, and learning problems (Stratton, Howe, & Battaglia, (1996).” The authors’ theory was based on a survey issued by Barr, Kogan, and Bookstein (1996). The survey was issued to 441 clients which revealed that 60% of those patients who were 12 years or older, had either been expelled, suspended or dropped out. This common finding among them were called disrupted school experiences. After evaluating the surveys, authors saw a correlation between academic problems and disruptions in school experiences. 70% seemed to have attention problems, 40% received special education services, and 65% were reported to have received some kind of remedial help in reading and mathematics when in school. The research by Barr, Kogan, and Bookstein (1996) helped them form the hypothesis that “those affected by prenatal exposure would show decreased intellectual abilities, have special learning deficiencies in math with a relative