Fetal Alcohol Syndrome is a permanent birth defect syndrome caused
by maternal consumption of alcohol during pregnancy, it is a leading
known cause of mental retardation and is entirely preventable. Effective
prevention of this syndrome begins with accurate, consistent diagnosis.
For the trained clinician, dysmorphologist, or clinical geneticist
there is little difficulty in making the diagnosis of FAS when the
typical anomalies in growth, face, and brain are all extreme and
the alcohol exposure is conclusive and substantial.
In the absence of accurate, reproducible and unbiased methods for
measuring and recording the severity of exposure and outcome in
individual patients, diagnoses will continue to vary widely from
clinic to clinic. From a clinical perspective, diagnostic misclassification
leads to inappropriate patient care, increased risk for secondary
disabilities and missed opportunities to achieve prevention.
This CD-ROM includes the Diagnostic Guide for Fetal Alchohol Syndrome
and Related Conditions. It also provides the user with various practice
examinations providing a final score on completion of the final
practice paper.
