No abstract

Increased rates of mental disorders in people with FASD are commonly reported. Mental health providers should routinely consider FASD in the diagnosis and management of mental illness and developmental disorders. The quality of the research and precision of comorbidity estimates would be improved by additional studies including people with FASD and non-FASD comparison subjects. Until these studies are available, this review provides the best available estimates of comorbid mental disorders in people with FASD.

Pediatric cardiologists may have frequent contact with children with FASD and increased levels of attention to prenatal alcohol exposure as a potential etiology of CHD is indicated.

This methodology may provide an inexpensive method for clinics and public health providers to identify risk factors and to identify maternal characteristics of patients with mental illness and developmental disorders.

BackgroundFetal alcohol spectrum disorder (FASD) is a highly prevalent lifelong disorder with high rates of comorbid neurodevelopmental disorders. Individuals with FASD are often exposed to abuse, neglect and foster home placements which have uncertain effects on the lifelong course of FASD. In this study we compare the prevalence of adverse childhood events (ACEs) and neurodevelopmental disorders in subjects with fetal alcohol spectrum disorders (FASD) and non-FASD controls.MethodsA cross-sectional chart review of patients referred to a regional developmental center was used to identify people with FASD and non-FASD controls. We recorded the number of ACEs and neurodevelopmental disorders in each patient’s chart. The most common diagnoses were attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, comprehension deficits, sleep disorders, and cognitive impairments. T-tests and a regression equation were utilized to determine significant differences between the groups.ResultsThe review identified 203 subjects, 98 with FASD and 105 non-FASD controls. Group mean age was 8.6 years and 64.5% were male. People with FASD were more likely to have any ACEs (mean 5.3) with ACE scores 3.7 points higher than non-FASD controls (mean 1.69) (t = 11.29; p < .001). Increased ACEs were associated with increased rates of neurodevelopmental disorders for people with FASD (R = .179, p = .026) but not for non-FASD controls (R = .130, p = .094).Conclusions: Both FASD and subsequent exposure to ACEs are associated with increased risk for development of comorbid neurodevelopmental disorders. Prevention of ACEs during childhood may decrease risk for development of comorbid neurodevelopmental disorders.