Fetal Alcohol Syndrome

Paper Summary:

This paper discusses fetal alcohol syndrome (FAS), a combination of birth defects that is associated with consuming alcohol during pregnancy and which is the leading cause of mental retardation and birth defects. It provides a look at FAS, using four reliable sources as a basis of analysis. The sources used are Streissguth, Jacobson and Jacobson, the National Center on Birth Defects and Developmental Disabilities (NCBDDD), and the National Organization on Fetal Alcohol Syndrome (NOFAS). The information obtained from these sources is compared with the textbook, "Infants and Children Prenatal Through Middle Childhood", by Laura Berk.

From the Paper:

"The terms FAS, fetal alcohol effects (FAE), possible fetal alcohol effects (PFAE), and alcohol-related neurodevelopmental disorder (ARND) are not interchangeable. Notes Streissguth, "Children who have only some of the characteristics of FAS (i.e., not enough for a full diagnosis) are often said to have fetal alcohol effects (FAE) or possible fetal alcohol effects (PFAE)" (p. 5). The terms FAE and PFAE have no distinct distinguishing criteria that make them a separate diagnosis, although they can be as destructive as FAS on the patient. The Institute of Medicine introduced the term alcohol-related neurodevelopmental disorder (ARND) in the mid-1980s, a term that centered in on the CNS characteristics of the disease, rather than growth deficiencies and facial characteristics."

More papers on Fetal Alcohol Syndrome:

• Essay # 70085 : "Fetal Alcohol Syndrome"
• Term Paper # 125057 : "Fetal Alcohol Syndrome: Effects and Interventions"
• Research Paper # 119000 : "Causes and Effects of Fetal Alcohol Syndrome"
• Research Paper # 128310 : "Fetal Alcohol Syndrome Health Promotion"

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