Using the Past to Step Forward

Fetal Alcohol Syndrome in the Western Cape Province of South Africa

Datos Bibliográficos

ID11033751
AutoresJake McKinstry (At the time the editorial was written, the author was a Master of Science candidate in Urban Planning at Columbia University’s School of Architecture, Planning, and Preservation, New York, NY., autor de correspondencia)
Año2005
Volumen95
Número7
Páginas1097-1099
Fecha de publicación2005-07-01
Peer ReviewedSí
Open AccessNo
TipoARTICLE
RevistaAmerican Journal of Public Health (JOURNAL)
Identificadores de la revistaISSN: 0090-0036 • E-ISSN: 1541-0048
EditorialAmerican Public Health Association (PUBLISHER • US)
DOI10.2105/ajph.2004.056366
PMID15983266
PMCIDPMC1449323
OpenAlexW2104731731
IdiomaEN
Citas recibidas6
Referencias citadas6

While the AIDS epidemic in South Africa has been well publicized and documented in recent years a lesser-known health crisis with profound socioeconomic implications has been developing for hundreds of years. The Western Cape Province of South Africa has the highest rates of fetal alcohol syndrome (FAS) in the world. FAS is caused by maternal alcohol use during pregnancy and is one of the leading causes of preventable mental and physical retardation among infants worldwide. Infants suffering from FAS often have low birthweights; physical dysmorphology most notably in the face and head; and developmental difficulties. The most recent statistics on FAS rates in the Western Cape Province reported by the National Institute of Alcoholism and Alcohol Abuse show that 40.5 to 46.4 per 1000 children are found by screening to have FAS. Compare this rate with a FAS frequency of 0.5 to 2.0 per 1000 children in the United States or the average rate of 0.97 per 1000 children in the developed world and the difference is staggering. (excerpt)

Archaeology · Biology · Cape · Environmental health · Fetal alcohol syndrome · Geography · Pregnancy · Socioeconomics · Sociology · Demography · Gestational Diabetes Research and Management · Homelessness and Social Issues · Medicine · Prenatal Substance Exposure Effects