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New 'eye movement' test may help treat fetal alcohol syndrome
November 14, 2005KINGSTON, Ont. - A simple test that measures eye movement may help to identify children with Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder (FASD) and ultimately lead to improved treatment for the condition, say Queen's University researchers.
At present there are no objective diagnostic tools that can be used to distinguish between children with FASD - which affects approximately one per cent of children in Canada - and those with other developmental disorders such as Attention-Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD).
Researcher James Reynolds and graduate student Courtney Green, of the Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology and the Centre for Neuroscience Studies, will present their findings next week at the annual meeting of the international Society for Neuroscience in Washington, D.C.
"Having a set of tests that can be used as diagnostic tools for fetal alcohol syndrome and all of the other behavioural disorders classified under the broader term fetal alcohol spectrum disorder is tremendously valuable," says Dr. Reynolds, who is part of a $1.25-million Queen's-led team focusing on fetal alcohol syndrome, funded by the Canadian Institutes of Health Research. "Now we can begin to identify specific deficits in these children."
Many of the behavioural tests used to assess children with FASD are geared to white, middle-class English-speaking people, notes Ms Green. "The biggest problem [in current tests] is cultural insensitivity," she says. "By measuring eye movement we can cut across cultural barriers and provide objectivity in identifying the disorder."
In a pilot study involving 25 girls and boys aged eight to 12, the Queen's team found that children with FASD have specific brain abnormalities which can be measured with eye movement testing. Defined as "birth defects resulting from a mother's consumption of alcohol during pregnancy", fetal alcohol syndrome is associated with hyperactivity, difficulty in learning and deficits in memory, understanding and reasoning, as well as problems dealing with stressful situations.
The next stage of the Queen's research will be to make the eye movement test mobile and transport it to targeted areas, such as northern and rural parts of Ontario, where FASD is believed to be more prevalent. The researchers envision this as a multi-centre project, in which other participants will work from the same set of pooled data.
"There is a clear need to develop new tools that can be used to reliably and objectively measure the brain injury of FASD," says Dr. Reynolds. "Ideally, these tools need to be mobile, inexpensive, and easy to use, for both diagnosis and the long-term evaluation of therapeutic interventions. Eye movements are ideally suited for this purpose."
Using the new functional MRI facility at Queen's, the team will then be able to measure differences in brain activity between children with fetal alcohol syndrome and those with other developmental disorders such as ADHD.
"Having access to this facility will have a huge impact on our research program," Dr. Reynolds says. "It allows us to create an integrated research strategy for carrying out studies to provide functional brain imaging data that can be directly related to neuro-behavioural deficits in individual children with FASD."
Queen's University
"Having a set of tests that can be used as diagnostic tools for fetal alcohol syndrome and all of the other behavioural disorders classified under the broader term fetal alcohol spectrum disorder is tremendously valuable," says Dr. Reynolds, who is part of a $1.25-million Queen's-led team focusing on fetal alcohol syndrome, funded by the Canadian Institutes of Health Research. "Now we can begin to identify specific deficits in these children."
Many of the behavioural tests used to assess children with FASD are geared to white, middle-class English-speaking people, notes Ms Green. "The biggest problem [in current tests] is cultural insensitivity," she says. "By measuring eye movement we can cut across cultural barriers and provide objectivity in identifying the disorder."
In a pilot study involving 25 girls and boys aged eight to 12, the Queen's team found that children with FASD have specific brain abnormalities which can be measured with eye movement testing. Defined as "birth defects resulting from a mother's consumption of alcohol during pregnancy", fetal alcohol syndrome is associated with hyperactivity, difficulty in learning and deficits in memory, understanding and reasoning, as well as problems dealing with stressful situations.
The next stage of the Queen's research will be to make the eye movement test mobile and transport it to targeted areas, such as northern and rural parts of Ontario, where FASD is believed to be more prevalent. The researchers envision this as a multi-centre project, in which other participants will work from the same set of pooled data.
"There is a clear need to develop new tools that can be used to reliably and objectively measure the brain injury of FASD," says Dr. Reynolds. "Ideally, these tools need to be mobile, inexpensive, and easy to use, for both diagnosis and the long-term evaluation of therapeutic interventions. Eye movements are ideally suited for this purpose."
Using the new functional MRI facility at Queen's, the team will then be able to measure differences in brain activity between children with fetal alcohol syndrome and those with other developmental disorders such as ADHD.
"Having access to this facility will have a huge impact on our research program," Dr. Reynolds says. "It allows us to create an integrated research strategy for carrying out studies to provide functional brain imaging data that can be directly related to neuro-behavioural deficits in individual children with FASD."
Queen's University
Fetal Alcohol Syndrome Current Events and Fetal Alcohol Syndrome News RSSFrogs reveal clues about the effects of alcohol during development
Fetal alcohol spectrum disorder (FASD) and Fetal alcohol syndrome (FAS) cause malformations in babies, including facial defects, short stature, and mental and behavioral abnormalities.
Prenatal alcohol exposure damages white matter, the brain's connective network
One part of the prenatal brain that may be particularly sensitive to alcohol's effects is white matter, nerve fibers through which information is exchanged between different areas of the central nervous system. A recent study has demonstrated that alcohol consumption during pregnancy can alter the microstructural integrity of developing fetal cerebral white matter in the frontal and occipital lobes of the brain.
Alcohol consumption can cause too much cell death, fetal abnormalities
The initial signs of fetal alcohol syndrome are slight but classic: facial malformations such as a flat and high upper lip, small eye openings and a short nose.
Researchers block damage to fetal brain following maternal alcohol consumption
In a study on fetal alcohol syndrome, researchers were able to prevent the damage that alcohol causes to cells in a key area of the fetal brain by blocking acid sensitive potassium channels and preventing the acidic environment that alcohol produces.
Prenatal drinking, environmental enrichment: effects on neurotrophins are independent of each other
Prenatal alcohol exposure may be particularly destructive for neurotrophins, a family of peptides that influence the growth, development and functional plasticity of the fetal brain.
Study suggests new way to screen infants for fetal alcohol syndrome
Children who have been diagnosed with Fetal Alcohol Syndrome (FAS) are more likely to have serious psychiatric and behavioral problems later in life, including a higher risk for dropping out of school, unemployment, and criminal behavior.
Eye blinks may help to identify children prenatally exposed to alcohol
While children with fetal alcohol syndrome (FAS) have identifiable craniofacial abnormalities, children with alcohol-related neurodevelopmental disorder (ARND) can have significant cognitive impairments without facial anomalies.
Research Reveals Secrets of Alcohol's Effect on Brain Cells
Alcohol triggers the activation of a variety of genes that can influence the health and activity of brain cells, and new research from Weill Cornell Medical College in New York City sheds light on how that process occurs.
Little evidence that binge drinking while pregnant seriously harms fetus
There is little substantive evidence that binge drinking while pregnant seriously harms the developing fetus, finds a study in the Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health.
Study reveals possible genetic risk for fetal alcohol disorders
New research in primates suggests that infants and children who carry a certain gene variant may be more vulnerable to the ill effects of fetal alcohol exposure.
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The Best I Can Be: Living with Fetal Alcohol Syndrome-Effects (Revised) (Mom's Choice Awards Recipient) by Jodee Kulp (Author), Liz Kulp (Author) A young teen with Fetal Alcohol Effects challenges the world to peer inside her life and brain. Through her own writings the reader is taken on a life changing journey that will impact their thinking about how to help and understand children with brain damage due to Fetal Alcohol. |
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Fetal Alcohol Syndrome: A Guide for Families and Communities by Ann Pytkowicz Streissguth (Author) Compelling and easy to understand, this book explains the medical and social issues surrounding fetal alcohol syndrome (FAS) and fetal alcohol effects (FAE). Compassionately written by the expert psychologist who conducted some of the earliest examinations of chidren with FAS and FAE more than 20 years ago, this guidebook explains how to identify and work with children and adults who have the disorder and how to educate prospective mothers and society at large. Photographs, illustrations, and case studies reveal the physical and behavioral manifestations of FAS and FAE, particularly in children. For parents, educators, pediatricians, psychologists, adoption workers, social workers, nurses, and child care providers, this timely book speaks to everyone seeking an understanding of the... |
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Reaching Out to Children with FAS/FAE: A Handbook for Teachers, Counselors, and Parents Who Live and Work with Children Affected by Fetal Alcohol Syndrome by Diane Davis (Author) |
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Recognizing and Managing Children With Fetal Alcohol Syndrome/Fetal Alcohol Effects: A Guidebook by Brenda, Ph.D. McCreight (Author) |
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The Challenge of Fetal Alcohol Syndrome: Overcoming Secondary Disabilities by Ann Streissguth (Editor), Jonathan Kanter (Editor) In the first book of its kind, experts describe how to help people with Fetal Alcohol Syndrome. A summary of recent findings and recommendations is presented by the team who conducted the largest study ever done on people of all ages with Fetal Alcohol Syndrome and Fetal Alcohol Effects. Twenty-one experts from the fields of human services, education, and criminal justice respond by describing their solutions to this problem of a birth defect that targets the brain and has lifelong consequences. Some of the most crippling secondary disabilities that people with FAS/FAE face include mental health problems, disrupted school experience, inappropriate sexual behavior, trouble with the law, alcohol and drug problems, difficulty caring for their children, and homelessness. This book... |
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Damaged Angels: An Adoptive Mother¿s Struggle to Understand the Tragic Toll of Alcohol in Pregnancy by Bonnie Buxton (Author) Part heartfelt memoir, part practical guide, Damaged Angels recounts Bonnie Buxton's struggles to raise an adopted daughter whom she didn't realize was afflicted with fetal alcohol disorder. Her book also offers guidance to parents who have children with FASD. By the time Bonnie’s daughter Colette hit first grade, her parents were coping with her frequent stealing and lying, and the necessity of special education. At fourteen, she discovered drugs and sex; by eighteen, she was a crack addict living on the streets. After many frustrating years consulting numerous therapists, a TV news story gave Bonnie the answer she was looking for — and sent her on a quest for a diagnosis and help for Colette. Damaged Angels can aid and comfort all those affected by FASD — the most common cause of... |
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Prenatal Exposure to Drugs/Alcohol: Characteristics And Educational Implications of Fetal Alcohol Syndrome And Cocaine/polydrug Effects by Jeanette M. Soby (Author) |
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Fetal Alcohol Syndrome, Fetal Alcohol Effects: Strategies for Professionals by Diane Malbin (Author) | |
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Worth the Trip: Raising and Teaching Children with Fetal Alcohol Syndrome Starring: Real Families Directed By: Vida Health Communications Worth the Trip is the first comprehensive video resource about the health, development and learning styles of children affected by fetal alcohol. The program presents strategies for meeting the developmental and behavioral challenges faced by children with FAS and the parents and professionals who care for them. Chapters address: - Sensory sensitivity - Eating and feeding - Activity levels - Sleep issues - Siblings - Friendships - Coming to terms with FAS - Impact of FAS on family life Worth the Trip was funded with a Small Business Innovative Research Grant from the National Institute of Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA). Awards include Cinema in Industry, National Educational Media Network, Parents Choice Award, U.S. International... |
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Message in a Bottle: The Making of Fetal Alcohol Syndrome by Janet Golden (Author) A generation has passed since a physician first noticed that women who drank heavily while pregnant gave birth to underweight infants with disturbing tell-tale characteristics. Women whose own mothers enjoyed martinis while pregnant now lost sleep over a bowl of rum raisin ice cream. In Message in a Bottle, Janet Golden charts the course of Fetal Alcohol Syndrome (FAS) through the courts, media, medical establishment, and public imagination. Long considered harmless during pregnancy (doctors even administered it intravenously during labor), alcohol, when consumed by pregnant women, increasingly appeared to be a potent teratogen and a pressing public health concern. Some clinicians recommended that women simply moderate alcohol consumption; others, however, claimed that... |
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