Fetal alcohol spectrum disorders awareness in health professionals: implications for psychiatry

Pediatrics for Disability: A Comprehensive Approach to Children with Syndromic Psychomotor Delay

Intellectual disability is the impairment of cognitive, linguistic, motor and social skills that occurs in the pediatric age and is also described by the term "mental retardation". Intellectual disability occurs in 3-28 % of the general population due to a genetic cause, including chromosome aberrations. Among people with intellectual disabilities, the cause of the disability was identified as a single gene disorder in up to 12 %, multifactorial disorders in up to 4 %, and genetic disorders in up to 8.5 %. Children affected by a malformation syndrome associated with mental retardation or intellectual disability represent a care challenge for the pediatrician. A multidisciplinary team is essential to manage the patient, thereby controlling the complications of the syndrome and promoting the correct psychophysical development. This requires continuous follow-up of these children by the pediatrician, which is essential for both the clinical management of the syndrome and facilitating the social integration of these children.

Knowledge and Practice towards Alcohol Consumption in a Sample of University Students

Objective: Alcohol affects many human systems and is involved in the pathogenesis of other diseases. Particular attention must be paid to alcohol consumption among young people. It has been shown that 25% of young people's deaths are attributable to alcohol, and around 35 million people aged over 11 had consumed at least one alcoholic beverage in 2015. Study Design: Young people aged 18-24 were the most vulnerable to binge drinking in Italy, and 50.6% of teenagers drunk alcohol. Only a few studies in the literature have investigated those habits in university students. This study aims to examine alcohol use habits in a population of university students in Italy. Methods: Between 2018 and 2019, an anonymous online questionnaire was randomly sent to university students from 17 different universities in a network of research centres to study alcohol use disorders. The survey included socio-demographic information, questions about alcohol use, knowledge about alcohol consumption, and related risks. Used questionnaires were the Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test-Consumption (AUDIT-C) and the Drinking Motive Questionnaire-Revised (DMQ-R). Results: the AUDIT-C revealed that 53.3% of students were high-risk drinkers. Regarding binge drinking habits, 13.1% of students admitted to binge drinking behavior at least once a month. In our sample, male students are more likely to be low-risk drinkers than female peers (p < 0.008). Students from northern Italy are more likely to be high-risk drinkers (p = 0.003). Beer (65.9%) and wine (60.9%) were the most consumed alcoholic beverages. The most common places to drink alcohol were pubs (85.5%). The most likely motivations to drink alcohol were enhancement (40.43%), social (38.39%), coping (15.63%), and social pressure or conformity (5.55%). Only 43.8% of participants reported having attended an educational course on alcohol. Conclusions: University students were not fully aware of the implications of alcohol misuse and will be part of the adult society as critical figures and future leaders. It is imperative to inform students about alcohol consumption risks and investigate the motivations to drink. Stress, anxiety, and social pressure are only a few issues young people are exposed to. Special attention must be paid to young people and their coping strategies that involve substance abuse by using educative, preventive, and motivational approaches.

Diagnosis of Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders (FASDs): Guidelines of Interdisciplinary Group of Polish Professionals

(1) Background: Considerable prevalence in Poland and serious health consequences of prenatal alcohol exposure indicated the need to develop national guidelines for the diagnosis of fetal alcohol spectrum disorders (FASDs). It was assumed that the guidelines must be in line with international standards but adjusted to the Polish context. (2) Methods: Work on recommendations was carried out by an interdisciplinary team of Polish specialists. Its first stage was to assess the usefulness in our country of the U.S. and Canadian guidelines. In the second stage, after several rounds of discussions, a consensus was achieved. (3) Results: The Polish guidelines for diagnosing FASD cover the following issues: 1. distinguished diagnostic categories; 2. diagnostic procedure; 3. assessment of prenatal exposure to alcohol; 4. assessment of sentinel facial dysmorphias; 5. assessment of body weight, height, and head circumference; 6. neurodevelopmental assessment. An important element of the recommendation is appendices containing practical tools that are useful in the diagnostic procedure. (4) Conclusions: National guidelines may improve the quality and standardization of FASD diagnosis in Poland, but their practical utility has to be monitored.

Prevalence of Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders (FASD) among Children Adopted from Eastern European Countries: Russia and Ukraine

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.