FASD Elephant (TM) Bonus Track 02: KDWA Interview - Part 2

07/19/07 • 19 min

This is a beginner's bonus track - the second half of an interview conducted on-air by KDWA on December 5, 2007, with myself and Alice Garceau, an adoptive mother of an FASD child. It was a good interview, and we continued with many FASD topics. If you haven't heard part one, go ahead and download it first. Next week, we will cover an overview of FASD, definitions, and the basics of terminology.

Feedback or comments may be sent to: Michael__at__FASDElephant__dot__com.

Feedback or comments may be sent to: Michael__at__FASDElephant__dot__com.

Previous Episode

FASD Elephant (TM) Bonus Track 01: KDWA Interview (12-05-2007)

This is an introductory bonus track - the first half of an interview conducted on-air by KDWA on December 5, 2007, with myself and Alice Garceau, an adoptive mother of an FASD child, and myself. Alice has been active in the FASD community for several years, runs a support group in the southern Twin Cities area, has been involved in several education videos and such about FASD (maybe we can post some at a later date), and has a lot of experience working with FASD. She was really a great person to meet.

It was a good interview, and we covered many topics concerning FASD. Next week, the second half will be released. Be sure to visit our friends at KDWA, at www.kdwa.com.

Feedback or comments may be sent to: Michael__at__FASDElephant__dot__com.

Next Episode

FASD Elephant (TM) #001: Definitions and Terminology

Today's episode covers the definiton of FASD and attempts to clear up the confusing terminology that has been used in the past.

Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder (FASD) describes a continuum of permanent birth defects caused by maternal consumption of alcohol during pregnancy. Maternal alcohol crosses the placental barrier and can stunt fetal growth or weight, create distinctive facial stigmata, damage neurons and brain structures, and/or cause other physical anomalies. While prenatal alcohol exposure does not automatically result in FASD, the U.S. Surgeon General advises pregnant women to abstain from alcohol use due to the risk of FASD.

The main effect of FASD is permanent central nervous system damage, in which developing brain cells and structures have been capriciously garbled, malformed, or underdeveloped by prenatal alcohol exposure. The risk of brain damage exists during each trimester, since the fetal brain develops throughout the entire pregnancy. Fetal alcohol exposure is regarded by researchers as the leading known cause of mental retardation in the Western world. In the United States alone, it is estimated that every year up to 40,000 infants are born with some form of FASD. The lifetime medical and social costs of each child are estimated to be as high as US$800,000 across the lifespan.

The term Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder is not in itself a clinical diagnosis but describes the full range of disabilities that may result from prenatal alcohol exposure. Currently, Fetal Alcohol Syndrome (FAS) is the only expression of prenatal alcohol exposure that is defined by the International Statistical Classification of Diseases and Related Health Problems and assigned ICD-9 and ICD-10 diagnoses.

There are a number of other subtypes based on partial expressions of FAS, including Partial Fetal Alcohol Syndrome (PFAS), Alcohol-Related Neurodevelopmental Disorder (ARND), Alcohol-Related Birth Defects (ARBD), and Fetal Alcohol Effect (FAE). The latter two terms (ARBD and FAE) are not in general use today due to definitional vagueness.

There are four components to an FASD evaluation and diagnosis:

Growth deficiency (low height and/or weight, at birth or any point in lifetime)
FAS facial features (small eyes, smooth philtrum [groove between the nose and upper lip], flattened upper lip)
Central nervous system damage (there will be at least a couple podcasts just on this topic)
Prenatal alcohol exposure (drinking while pregnant)

Diagnostics will be covered in the next podcast.

Feedback or comments may be sent to: Michael__at__FASDElephant__dot__com.