FETAL ALCOHOL SPECTRUM DISORDERS (FASD) Fetal Alcohol Syndrome Disorders: Comments on Astley, O’Brien and Mattson, and O’Connor

Jones and Smith 1 coined the term fetal alcohol syndrome (FAS) to label a pattern of altered growth and morphogenesis observed in a group of children born to alcoholic mothers. This pattern of dysmorphia included a cluster of facial anomalies (e.g., short palpebral fissures), growth retardation, and evidence of central nervous system (CNS) involvement (e.g., microcephaly and developmental delays). In the years following the publication of the Jones et al. paper, it became evident that the expression of this syndrome varied considerably as a function of differences in exposure (e.g., quantity, frequency, timing) and genetic factors. Since clinicians were reluctant to diagnose those individuals with partial expression of the syndrome, Clarren and Smith 2