Prevalence of Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders (Fasd) among Children Adopted from Eastern European Countries

Russia and Ukraine

Bibliographic Data

ID15495702
AuthorsJoan Colom (0000-0001-6861-7865, Generalitat de Catalunya, corresponding author), Lídia Segura (0000-0002-6431-6587, Generalitat de Catalunya), Lidia Segura-García (Program on Substance Abuse, Public Health Agency of Catalonia, Department of Health, Generalitat de Catalunya, 08005 Barcelona, Spain), Adriana Bastons-Compta (Instituto de Salud Carlos III), Marta Astals (Instituto de Salud Carlos III), Vicente Andreu-Férnández (0000-0001-7183-8706, Instituto de Salud Carlos III), Natàlia Barcons (Hospital Sant Joan de Déu Barcelona), Raquel Vidal (Universitat Autonòma de Barcelona), Ana I Ibar (Generalitat de Catalunya), Vicky Fumadó (Hospital Sant Joan de Déu Barcelona), Nuria Gómez (0000-0002-0797-6474, Psychiatry Service, Hospital Universitari Vall d’Hebron, Group of Psychiatry, Mental Health and Addiction, Vall d’Hebron Research Institute (VHIR), 08035 Barcelona, Spain), Núria Giménez (0000-0002-0962-6216, Universitat Autonòma de Barcelona), Agnés Russiñol (Department of Labour, Social Affairs and Families, Catalan Institute for Fostering and Adoption, 08001 Barcelona, Spain), Óscar García‐Algar (0000-0001-5708-4362, Instituto de Salud Carlos III)
Year2021
Volume18
Issue4
Pages1388-1388
Publication date2021-02-03
Open AccessYes
TypeARTICLE
VenueInternational Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 1661-7827 • E-ISSN: 1660-4601
PublisherMultidisciplinary Digital Publishing Institute (PUBLISHER • CH)
DOI10.3390/ijerph18041388
PMID33546212
OpenAlexW3127577539
LanguageEN
Citations received2
References cited21

Fetal alcohol spectrum disorder (FASD) is a leading cause of neurodevelopmental disorders. Children adopted internationally from countries where alcohol consumption during pregnancy is very high are at greater risk for FASD. Lack of expertise in diagnosing FASD and mixed neurodevelopmental and behavioral signs due to abandonment complicate a timely diagnosis. The aim of this study was to determine the prevalence of FASD in adopted children. Children between the ages of 8 and 24 adopted from Russia and Ukraine were evaluated for clinical and historical features of FASD. Of the 162 children evaluated, 81 (50%) met FASD diagnostic criteria. Thirty-three (20.4%) children had fetal alcohol syndrome (FAS), 28 (17.2%) had partial FAS, 2 (1.2%) had alcohol-related birth defects (ARBD) and 18 (11.1%) had alcohol-related neurodevelopmental disorder (ARND). Of the 81 children in which fetal alcohol exposure could not be confirmed, many had manifestations that would have established a diagnosis of FASD if a history of maternal alcohol consumption was confirmed. In a population of children with a high risk of prenatal alcohol exposure (adoptees from Eastern European countries), at least 50% showed manifestations associated with FASD. The reported prevalence in this study is in line with the results obtained in a previous study as well as in orphanages of origin

Alcohol · Alcohol consumption · Environmental health · Fetal alcohol · Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder · Fetal alcohol syndrome · Population · Pregnancy · Psychiatry · Folate and B Vitamins Research · Gestational Diabetes Research and Management · Medicine · Prenatal Substance Exposure Effects · Pediatrics

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