Profile of Mothers of Children with Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder: A Population-Based Study in Canada

Svetlana Popova, Shannon Lange, Valerie Temple, Vladimir Poznyak, Albert E. Chudley, Larry Burd, Margaret Murray and Jürgen Rehm
Additional contact information
Svetlana Popova: Centre for Addiction and Mental Health, Institute for Mental Health Policy Research, 33 Ursula Franklin Street, Toronto, ON M5S 2S1, Canada
Shannon Lange: Centre for Addiction and Mental Health, Institute for Mental Health Policy Research, 33 Ursula Franklin Street, Toronto, ON M5S 2S1, Canada
Valerie Temple: Surrey Place, 2 Surrey Place, Toronto, ON M5S 2C2, Canada
Vladimir Poznyak: Department of Mental Health and Substance Abuse, World Health Organization, 20 Avenue Appia, CH-1211 Geneva, Switzerland
Albert E. Chudley: Department of Paediatrics and Child Health, University of Manitoba, 840 Sherbrook Street, Winnipeg, MB R3A 1S1, Canada
Larry Burd: North Dakota Fetal Alcohol Syndrome Center, Pediatrics Department, 1301 N Columbia Rd, Stop 9037 Grand Forks, ND 58202-9037, Canada
Margaret Murray: National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD 20892, USA
Jürgen Rehm: Centre for Addiction and Mental Health, Institute for Mental Health Policy Research, 33 Ursula Franklin Street, Toronto, ON M5S 2S1, Canada

IJERPH, 2020, vol. 17, issue 21, 1-15

Abstract: Objective: To compare the characteristics of mothers of children with Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder (FASD) with mothers of typically developing control children. Methods: The study utilized a cross-sectional, observational design, using active case ascertainment. Biological mothers were interviewed using a standardized retrospective questionnaire to collect data on demographics, living environment, pregnancy history, nutrition, alcohol and other drug use prior to and following pregnancy recognition. Results: A total of 173 mothers were interviewed. Of these, 19 had a child who was diagnosed with FASD, five had a child who had received a deferred FASD diagnosis, and 37 had children who were selected into the control group as typically developing children. The remaining 112 mothers had children who did not meet diagnostic criteria for FASD. The mothers of children with FASD did not differ significantly from mothers of the control group children with respect to age, ethnicity, marital status, and employment status at the time of pregnancy. However, mothers of children with FASD had lower levels of education ( p < 0.01) and were more likely to have received financial support ( p < 0.05) at the time of pregnancy, to have smoked tobacco ( p < 0.001), and to have used marijuana or hashish ( p < 0.01) prior to pregnancy recognition, compared with mothers of control children. All mothers of children with FASD reported alcohol consumption prior to pregnancy recognition; however, only 10.5% reported alcohol consumption following pregnancy recognition. None of the mothers interviewed reported any drug use following pregnancy recognition. Conclusions: Population-based preventive interventions, including repeated screening, monitoring, and education regarding the effects of alcohol use, as well as other substances, before and during pregnancy, are needed to eliminate risk for FASD and other negative consequences on child and maternal health.

Keywords: maternal characteristics; pregnancy; prenatal alcohol exposure; fetal alcohol syndrome; fetal alcohol spectrum disorder (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2020
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (1)

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