fetal alcohol syndrome

fetal alcohol syndrome A syndrome of damage that occurs to a child before birth as a result of the mother drinking alcohol during pregnancy. Abbreviated FAS. FAS always involves brain damage, impaired growth, and head and face abnormalities. FAS is one of the leading causes of mental retardation in the US. FAS is the extreme end of the fetal alcohol spectrum disorders (FASDs), the terms used to describe the range of effects that prenatal exposure to alcohol may have. In addition to FAS, the FASDs also include conditions in which the individuals have some, but not all, of the characteristics of FAS. These conditions include alcohol-related birth defects (ARBD) and alcohol-related neurodevelopmental disabilities (ARND). Besides education of women and surgery on children with FAS to correct major physical defects, there is no treatment for FAS. No amount of alcohol has been proven safe during pregnancy. To establish the diagnosis of FAS, the following signs must be present: small size and weight before and after birth (pre- and postnatal growth retardation); evidence of brain delay in development, intellectual impairment, or neurologic abnormalities; and specific appearance of the head and face. At least two of the following groups of signs must be present: small head size (microcephaly); small eyes (microphthalmia) and/or short eye openings (palpebral fissures); and underdevelopment of the upper lip, indistinct groove between the lip and nose (the philtrum), and flattened cheekbones. See also fetal alcohol spectrum disorders.