Preview

Fetal Alcohol Syndrome Essay Example

Satisfactory Essays
Open Document
Open Document
495 Words
Grammar
Grammar
Plagiarism
Plagiarism
Writing
Writing
Score
Score
Fetal Alcohol Syndrome Essay Example
Mini Paper 2

Fetal alcohol Syndrome

Prepared by:

What is Fetal Alcohol Syndrome (FAS)?

FAS is the leading cause of mental retardation in the U.S. today. FAS affects approximately 1 in every 500 born in North America. Mother’s drinking alcoholic beverages during pregnancy causes FAS. FAS is characterized by:
 Smaller heads
 Deformed facial features (small widely spaced eyes, underdeveloped jaw, thin upper lip, and short upturned nose).
 Abnormal joints and limbs- these include deformities of the small joints of the hands as well as an incomplete rotation at the elbow.
 Poor coordination
 Problems with learning- difficulty sequencing, difficulty understanding cause and effect, and weak generalizing skills.
 Short memories
 Medical problems- vision problems, hearing problems, epilepsy, renal failure, heart failure, and death.
 Inappropriate behavior- poor impulse control and poor judgement.

How FAS Affects Functioning In School: Beginning with infancy, the children have problems at feeding and are highly irritable. They also exhibit unpredictable sleeping and eating patterns, which make it hard for the baby to be cared for and for maternal bonding to occur. During development, both physical and mental, FAS children have very fine and poor motor coordination skills and it becomes very apparent at the preschool age. They also are very affectionate but at the same time very hyperactive, which makes it a problem for the teachers who have them in class to deal with. This is why they are, during the first few years of school, given the diagnoses of having attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD): this diagnoses is given because of there high activity level, short attention span, and poor short term memory. Many of these children require special education help regardless of the fact that their IQ falls between the normal range. Their hyperactivity calls for them to receive special attention that normal

You May Also Find These Documents Helpful

  • Good Essays

    Unit 14 E4 Cache

    • 433 Words
    • 2 Pages

    | * Hearing problems this is because bones of the middle and inner ear may develop differently in children with the syndrome. * Eye problems, the child may have a squint, their eyes may turn towards the nose/middle and they may need glasses as are usually short sighted or long sighted. * Bone, muscle, nerve, or joint problems * Immune system problems * Developmental delay…

    • 433 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Better Essays

    Like any condition, treatment for fetal alcohol syndrome is constantly emerging. Since the syndrome causes neurological changes similar to attention deficit hyperactivity disorder it was once thought that medications used to treat attention deficit hyperactivity disorder would be useful in treating fetal alcohol syndrome.2 Conflicting results from the use of the medications challenged doctors to conduct treatment differently. Pharmacists and doctors are now looking at the chemical changes that occur during and cause fetal alcohol syndrome. Medical specialists are in a dilemma though in regards to studies. It is not common to have human subjects, especially infants and children to test out new experiments; however, pharmacists and doctors have been able to work with dementia patients and have seen improvement in damage. As with any drug, clinical trials continually need to be tested. This simply means that no specific treatment has been proven successful yet.2…

    • 1056 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Better Essays

    It is incurable and there is no specific treatment. With the fetal alcohol spectrum disorder, the mental and physical defects last for a lifetime. Of course, there are ways in helping a person cope and live a better life: heart problems may need surgery, learning problems may need specialized classes, and counselling may be provided for behavioural problems. There is no known diagnosis and the issues may intensify as the years pass. This is why it is extremely important for the family to support each other and help in terms of taking care of the child or patiently teaching them how to live independently. There is also an alternative disorder named alcohol-related neurodevelopment disorder. It refers to the same behavioural and emotional problems that are displayed in the fetal alcohol spectrum disorder—but the difference is there are no physical deficiencies. The problems will only occur internally but not on the external features of the child. Though in alcohol-related neurodevelopment disorder, the ability to succeed is also very hard to achieve because their behavioural problems override everything else. To act on the disorder as early as possible is highly important; the sooner the problems may be targeted, the more one can avoid. Once the problems are identified, further precautions may be made and the doctors are able to manage the disorder. The child is not the only one who…

    • 2151 Words
    • 9 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Good Essays

    Fetal Alcohol Syndrome, is drinking during pregnancy that endangers the fetus and causes effects on the unborn. Alcohol crosses the placenta and deprives the baby of nutrients and oxygen. The consumption of alcohol during pregnancy causes physical, mental and neurobehavioral issues. It increases growth restriction, abnormalities in the brain, central nervous system with impairment in cognition and behavior, and physical abnormalities. Some of the disorders are known as alcohol related neuro-developmental disorder (ARND) and the physical malformations are referred to alcohol-related birth defects (ARBD). I have learned that some children commonly go undiagnosed, causing learning difficulties later in school. Alcohol causes an incredible damage; it interferes with the orderly development of tissues during the most critical periods. When the mother consumes alcohol, the fetus is being toxic by it. My question is why risk it or why does this happen. Every woman should be educated on this matter to prevent…

    • 638 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Better Essays

    According to the Association for Retarded Citizens or (AAMR), Mental Retardation is defined as; a disability characterized by significant limitations both in intellectual functioning and in adaptive behavior as expressed in conceptual, social, and practical adaptive skills. Though its causes can be attributed to a variable amount of many things, here are just a few of known caused medical factors; Genetic conditions, which have been the results from abnormalities of genes inherited from one or both parents, errors when genes combine, or from other disorders of the genes caused during pregnancy by infections, overexposure to x-rays and other factors. Problems during pregnancy, some of these problems, in the opinion of the author, are definitely avoidable such as; the use of alcohol or drugs by the pregnant mother which can cause mental…

    • 1470 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Good Essays

    There is no cure or specific treatment for FAS. However, early intervention services can help reduce some of the effects of fetal alcohol syndrome and prevent some of the secondary disabilities that result. Some of the intervention services, such as a team that includes a special education teacher, speech therapist, physical and occupational therapists,psychologist. Early intervention to help with walking, talking and social skills. If FAS is diagnosed earlier in life, more progress can be…

    • 543 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    Fetal Alcohol Syndrome (FAS)

    • 9889 Words
    • 40 Pages

    Fetal alcohol syndrome is a common — yet preventable — cause of mental retardation. The severity of mental problems varies, with some children experiencing them to a far greater degree than others.…

    • 9889 Words
    • 40 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Better Essays

    In the United States of America, one out of every seven hundred and fifty children is born with fetal alcohol syndrome (FAS). Mothers who consume alcohol anytime during pregnancy, puts their children at risk for multiple constellations of abnormalities when they are born. A common condition observed in children affected is optic nerve hypoplasia, which basically is the underdevelopment of the optic nerve during pregnancy. The affected child has abnormal shaped eyes that appear closer together, which can contribute to the poor visual acuity and their dysmorphic facial features shown up to ninety percent of the births. Unilateral may occur infrequently in one eye and more commonly in both eyes known as bilateral optic disc hyperplasia. Nystagmus…

    • 1244 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Good Essays

    Alcohol is considered to be the leading problem of developmental disabilities and birth defects in the United States. There is a difference between heavy drinking during pregnancy and a few glasses of red wine throughout the entire pregnancy. Fetal alcohol syndrome or FAS is caused from heavy drinking. Another type of fetal disease is fetal alcohol spectrum disorders or FASD. This type of disease involves many different types of learning, behavioral, and physical problems. Fetal alcohol syndrome just happens to be the severe type of them all.…

    • 1261 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    Fetal Alcohol Syndrome

    • 423 Words
    • 2 Pages

    Three types of fetal alcohol syndrome: fetal alcohol syndrome (FAS), alcohol-related neurodevelopment disorder (ARND), alcohol-related birth defects (ARBD). Fetal alcohol syndrome is the severe end of the fetal alcohol spectrum disorder, where fetal death is the most extreme outcome from drinking alcohol during pregnancy. Problems associated with this disorder might have abnormal facial features, growth problems, and central nervous abnormalities including small head circumference, neurological problems, cognitive/development deficits, and behavioral/emotional deficits. The alcohol-related neurodevelopment disorder is where there is a history of alcohol exposure but the child does not meet all the official requirements of fetal alcohol syndrome. Symptoms with ARND might have intellectual disabilities and problems with behavior and learning. They also might do poorly in school and have difficulties with math, memory, attention, judgment, and poor impulse control.…

    • 423 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    Central Idea : To inform my audience of what the effects of Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disease is and how to treat it.…

    • 956 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    Fetal Alcohol Syndrome

    • 6487 Words
    • 26 Pages

    Fetal alcohol syndrome (FAS) is a pattern of mental and physical defects that can develop in a fetus in association with high levels of alcohol consumption during pregnancy. Alcohol crosses the placental barrier and can stunt fetal growth or weight, create distinctive facial stigmata, damage neurons and brain structures, which can result in psychological or behavioral problems, and cause other physical damage.[1][2][3] [4] The main effect of FAS is permanent central nervous system damage, especially to the brain. Developing brain cells and structures can be malformed or have development interrupted by prenatal alcohol exposure; this can create an array of primary cognitive and functional disabilities (including poor memory, attention deficits, impulsive behavior, and poor cause-effect reasoning) as well as secondary disabilities (for example, predispositions to mental health problems and drug addiction).[3][5] Alcohol exposure presents a risk of fetal brain damage at any point during a pregnancy, since brain development is ongoing throughout pregnancy.[6]…

    • 6487 Words
    • 26 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Good Essays

    Fetal Alcohol Syndrome

    • 1684 Words
    • 7 Pages

    Depression is considered the most common mental illness diagnosis, occurring in 94% of adults (TCHP, 2000). It is also considered a secondary disability due to the fact that depression may result from dealing with other problems caused by fetal alcohol syndrome. Children who have grown up with fetal alcohol syndrome have difficulty learning from consequences, have immature social behavior, poor problem solving skills, difficulty managing money and have poor judgment and impulse control. As these children get older, dealing with these issues takes a toll on them and as mentioned previously adults with fetal alcohol syndrome have difficulty maintaining healthy and successful relationships, trouble staying in school or keeping jobs and often rely on long-term support and supervision. Without proper support, adults are at a much higher risk for developing secondary disabilities such as depression (Kellerman, 2005). As having to deal with these issues can manifest itself into a mental disorder more often into…

    • 1684 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    Fetal Alcohol Syndrome

    • 2705 Words
    • 11 Pages

    Fetal alcohol syndrome (FAS), first described in the published medical literature in 1968, refers to a constellation of physical abnormalities, most obvious in the features of the face and in the reduced size of the newborn, and problems of behavior and cognition.While the effects of alcohol have been researched countless times, it was not until the 20th century that it was recognized for its effects on the fetal development. Fetal Alcohol Syndrome is an umbrella term used to describe the range of effects that can occur in a baby whose mother drinks during the pregnancy. The prevalence of Fetal Alcohol Syndrome ranges from 0.5 to 7.0 cases per 1,000 births in the United States (Warren, 2011). Alcohol is now recognized as the leading most preventable cause of birth defects and developmental disorders in the United States (Bailey and Sokol, 2008). The facial effects of fetal alcohol syndrome are easy to differentiate but the cognitive effects are what make Fetal Alcohol Syndrome challenging to diagnose.…

    • 2705 Words
    • 11 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Good Essays

    In 1973 in the United States of America, James and Smith continued the research about Fetal Alcohol Syndrome FAS. They mentioned that (FAS) affect the fetus growth and cause bad result to the fetus before and after being born (Caleekal, 1989).…

    • 634 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays