News
NeuroDevNet: FASD Research from the Lab to the Community! Webinar
Date: Feb 13, 2013
Time: 8:00 AM - 9:00 AM
Place: Webinar
Host: NeuroDevNet
Many are familiar with NeuroDevNet, one of Canada's Research Centres of Excellence, and their research in genetics and structural alterations in the brain as a result of fetal alcohol exposure. What you may not be aware of is how far beyond this their research in FASD goes. Neuroethics and neuroinformatics are two other arms that bring a variety of research lenses to the issue of FASD.
Clinician Suspicion of an Alcohol Problem: An Observational Study
A study from the American Academy of Family Physicians (AAFP) National Research Network compared the sensitivity, specificity and predictive values of clinician suspicion detection of alcohol problems with screening detection of alcohol problems in patients. The results support the use of a screening tool to supplement clinicians' suspicions. To read about this study, click here.
Annals of Family Medicine January/February 2013
P.E.I. study shows surprising fetal alcohol disorder numbers
A CBC News article highlights a new study from Prince Edward Island that showed at least 3.1 per cent of PEI babies were exposed to frequent prenatal alcohol consumption after the first trimester of pregnancy.
For one year, health officials collected a sample from the first bowel movement of nearly every baby born on P.E.I. About 1,300 samples were tested to see if the baby's mother had been drinking heavily in the last six months of pregnancy.
The researchers said it's a good first step to reducing the number of babies born with the disorder. To read this article, click here.
CBC News, Posted: Jan 21, 2013 9:19 PM AT
Gutsy book from first time author launches Sunday
Micheal Mann, the Sunshine Coast’s latest published author, is unique in many ways. He’s a bright, articulate man who uses words to convey feelings and experiences most of us will never come close to duplicating.
At his book launch this Sunday, Jan. 20, 2 p.m. at the Sunshine Coast Arts Centre in Sechelt, Mann will be reading from his book, I Am a Man Who Cries.
The book opens with a brutally honest essay, F.A.S.D. & Me. The FASD is an acronym for one of the most difficult “invisible disabilities” there is for society to understand. Fetal alcohol spectrum disorder covers myriad behaviours all attributable to alcohol being used when the person was a developing fetus.
Which women and girls are most likely to binge drink?
Primary Disabilities of FASD - eLearning Video
A primary disability is a functional deficit that is a result of permanent brain injury. A primary disability affects how a student learns. This video explores the learning and behaviour patterns of a brain affected by FASD. To view, click here.
Unplanned parenthood: how drinking while pregnant changes lives forever
This compelling article discusses many of the challenges of FASD from a personal, policy, and cultural perspective, with a focus on FASD in Canada. The piece is a call to action, concluding that “Almost four decades after researchers pinpointed the devastating effects of alcohol on the unborn child, the subject is only now garnering serious attention” and “FASD children have long been misunderstood and badly treated, often landing in foster care or on the street.”
To read more, click here.
Article, The Globe and Mail, January 2013
Prenatal Alcohol Exposure Affects Vasculature Development in the Neonatal Brain
A study published in the December 2012 edition of Annals of Neurology concludes “Prenatal alcohol exposure affects cortical angiogenesis both in mice and in pFAS/FAS patients, suggesting that vascular defects contribute to alcohol-induced brain abnormalities.”
To read more, click here.
Educating Austin: supporting kids with fetal alcohol syndrome
This Globe and Mail article by Lisa Priest chronicles the journey of student Austin Layte, a young Canadian student with a diagnosis of pFAS. Austin has faced many challenges in the Canadian education system and had mixed success with a special program called Kidslink, through his region’s mental health service. “Unfortunately, that program was not geared toward children who have permanent FASD issues… Despite early planning to discuss his needs, trouble soon came and he was sent home for aggressive behavior…” His mother says, “These kids can’t be fixed – they need to be supported to be successful.”
To read more, click here.
