Fetal alcohol syndrome

1. Fetal Alcohol Syndrome (FAS)

2. Definition:
• In the United States, alcohol is the
leading known preventable cause of birth
defects, both physical and
developmental.
• Many women drink alcohol while
pregnant. It is estimated that each year in
the US, 1 in every 750 infants are born
with FAS, while another 40,000 are born
with fetal alcohol effects (FAE).

3. The Different Types of FASD’s:
• Fetal Alcohol Syndrome (FAS):
FAS represents the severe end of the FASD spectrum. Fetal death is the most extreme outcome
from drinking alcohol during pregnancy. People with FAS might have abnormal facial features,
growth problems, and central nervous system (CNS) problems. People with FAS can have
problems with learning, memory, attention span, communication, vision, or hearing. They may
have one or more of these problems. This is one of the number one causes for mental
retardation.
• Alcohol-Related Neurodevelopmental Disorder (ARND):
People with ARND might have intellectual disabilities and problems with behavior and
learning. They might do poorly in school and have difficulties with math, memory, attention,
judgment, and poor impulse control.
• Alcohol-Related Birth Defects (ARBD):
People with ARBD might have problems with the heart, kidneys, or bones or with hearing. They
might have a mix of these.

4. FACTS:
• There is no specific age group
because FAS can not only
effect infants, but it can effect
them for this entire life.
• Children that have Fetal
Alcohol Effects (FAE) or
ARND normally are
undiagnosed because they
don’t have any type of
physical symptoms or no
developmental delays, they
just seem stubborn and
belligerent.

6. Signs & Symptoms:
• Low Birth weight
• Small head Circumference
• Failure to thrive
• Developmental delay
• Organ dysfunction
• Epilepsy
• Poor coordination/fine motor skills
• Poor socialization skills, building and
maintaining friendships
• Lack of imagination or curiosity
• Learning difficulties, including poor memory, inability to understand concepts such
as time and money, poor language comprehension, poor problem-solving skills
• Behavioral problems
• Facial abnormalities, including smaller eye openings, flattened
cheek bones, and indistinct philtrum (an underdeveloped groove between the nose
and upper lip)

8. Treatment Options:
• There's no cure or specific treatment for fetal alcohol
syndrome. The physical defects and mental
deficiencies typically persist for a lifetime.
– Heart abnormalities may require surgery.
– Learning problems may be helped by special services in
school.
– Parents often benefit from counseling to help the family
with a child's behavioral problem.

9. How do teachers cope with children with FASD (Fetal
Alcohol Syndrome Disorder)?
• For the teacher to be able to recognize when a student with FASD is getting
overwhelmed, the teacher must work with the parents to know the signs.
• The students with FASD most of the time need more one-on-one (teachers aide) help
to master the material they are being given.
• The teachers must realize that students with FASD get frustrated very easily and that
they need to try not to get frustrated at the student. The teacher needs to understand
that the student gets easily over stimulated.
• Reward for good behavior, don’t punish for bad because they live by the moment and
don’t understand because they learn from mistakes.

10. References:
• http://www.cdc.gov/ncbddd/fasd/facts.html
• http://kidshealth.org/parent/medical/brain/fas.html
• http://fasd.brighttomorrow.com/?page=3_2
• http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/fetal-alcohol-
syndrome/DS00184
• http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmedhealth/PMH0001909/#ad
am_000911.disease.causes
• Google Images