[afro-nets] International Fetal Alcohol Syndrome Day

[Lauren Pincus <lauren@healthnet.org>]

HealthNet News Special Edition-International Fetal Alcohol
Syndrome Day
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Dear colleagues,

This past weekend the world commemorated children with fetal
alcohol syndrome (FAS). This condition occurs when women drink
alcohol while pregnant, leaving their children mentally and
physically impaired for life. Fetal alcohol syndrome is a
difficult condition to diagnose and is often overlooked.
Children born with FAS are often temperamental, impulsive,
stubborn, and hyperactive and they may or may not display a
range of physical characteristics that make their condition
recognizable. Their IQ and metal acuity is also often lower for
certain abilities.

Preventing FAS requires identifying and educating at-risk women
BEFORE they become pregnant. Many women continue to drink during
their first weeks or month of pregnancy because they do not know
they are pregnant, leading to irreparable damage to the child.
This special edition of HealthNet News features a section on
prevention and a series of questionnaires that can be given to
women to determine their level of alcohol consumption. It also
contains the abstract of an important FAS prevalence study done
in Africa and research detailing the health impacts of alcohol
on an unborn child.

To obtain a free copy of this special edition, please
mailto:hnet@healthnet.org. We are obligated by our content
providers (medical journals publishers) to limit our readers to
developing countries. Issues are only available for residents of
developing countries.


TABLE OF CONTENTS
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No. 12 HealthNet News - Special Issue 9/Sept/06 International
Fetal Alcohol Syndrome Day
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SYMPTOMS OF FAS
1. Fetal alcohol syndrome (FAS) and its long-term effects.
2. Physical and Emotional Symptoms PREVALENCE OF FAS IN AFRICA
3. Fetal alcohol syndrome epidemiology in a South African
community: a second study of a very high prevalence area.
4. Use of substance and non-prescription drugs by pregnant
Nigerian Women DIAGNOSIS METHODS
5. Eye measurements in 7-year-old black South African children.
6. Identifying the behavioural phenotype in Fetal Alcohol
Spectrum Disorder: sensitivity, specificity and screening
potential. HEALTH IMPACTS OF FAS
7. Drinking patterns and alcohol-related birth defects.
8. Congenital malformations in mice induced by addiction to
alcohol and cocaine 9. Fetal Alcohol Syndrome and Eye Health
10. Peripheral nerve conduction abnormalities in children
exposed to alcohol in utero IDENTIFYING AT-RISK MOTHERS
11. Maternal risk factors for fetal alcohol syndrome in the
Western cape province of South Africa: a population-based study.
12. Identifying hazardous alcohol consumption during pregnancy:
implementing a research-based model in real life.
13. Frequently Asked Questions for Pregnant Women
RESOURCES: TLFB and AUDIT Questionnaires

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EDITORS: Lauren Pincus Leela McCullough, Ed.D Managing Editor
SATELLIFE
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Lauren Pincus Information Officer

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