Why Take the Gamble?

The risk of having a child with Fetal Alcohol Syndrome (FAS) is always a possibility for women who decide to drink alcohol when they are pregnant, so why take the gamble? The only known facts that we know about this subject is that the number of women who drink alcohol during their pregnancy is much higher than the number who give birth to a child with Fetal Alcohol Syndrome and also that there is no safe threshold. This means there is no science that can prove an exact amount of alcohol that leads to a pregnant women giving birth to a child with FAS. What does a child with FAS look like? They will have functional impairments and issues coping with their everyday life including a higher chance of dropping out of school, abusing drugs or alcohol, having an abnormal sexual behavior, and a possibility of delinquency. A study was started by a German commissioner on drug-related issues and was conducted by the Society of Neuropediatrics. The key question of the experiment was, “What criteria enable development-based diagnosis of full-blown fetal alcohol syndrome in children and adolescents.” (Landgraf) In their research experiment, for a study to be considered as having full blown FAS they had to have the following four categories, growth abnormalities, facial abnormalities, abnormalities of the Central nervous system, and a confirmed or unconfirmed intrauterine alcohol exposure. Each of the four requirements had its own specific requirement such as the participant had to have at least one of the three requirements at a given time in relation to their body weight, length, or Body Mass Index in order to fall in the category of “growth abnormalities”.  As they uncovered their results they found something particular in each category that can be used as a yes or no to the question if this child has FAS. A few of these results are things that can be seen in how child’s body was physically formed such as it having a smaller body length and weight and also the smoothing of the philtrum or a thin upper lip. The German guideline group continues to research FAS so that doctors can have certain symptoms or findings to look for when diagnosing this disease.

Abstract

Landgraf, M., Nothacker, M., Kopp, I., & Heinen, F. (2013). The Diagnosis of Fetal Alcohol Syndrome. Dtsch Arztebl Int., 110(42), 703-710.