Burleigh, Charlotte Rebecca;
Lynn, Richard M;
Verity, Chris;
Winstone, Anne Marie;
White, Simon R;
Johnson, Kathryn;
(2023)
Fetal alcohol syndrome in the UK.
Archives of Disease in Childhood
, 108
(10)
pp. 852-856.
10.1136/archdischild-2023-325571.
Preview |
Text
Fetal alcohol syndrome in the UK.pdf - Published Version Download (427kB) | Preview |
Abstract
Objective: To determine the incidence of fetal alcohol syndrome (FAS) in the UK in children aged 0–16 years. Design: Active surveillance was undertaken through the British Paediatric Surveillance Unit between October 2018 and October 2019 inclusive. Data were collected from reporting clinicians using standardised questionnaires. Patients: Children aged 0–16 years in the UK and Ireland with a diagnosis of FAS seen in the previous month. This study did not include children with fetal alcohol spectrum disorder. Main outcome measures: Demographic details (including age and ethnicity), details of exposure, growth parameters, neurological and cognitive diagnoses, and service usage. Results: 148 notifications were received. After exclusions and withdrawals, there were 10 confirmed and 37 probable cases (analysed together). Just 24 of these children were newly diagnosed with FAS during the surveillance period, giving an estimated incidence rate of 3.4/100 000 live births (95% CI 2.2 to 5.0); their median age at diagnosis was just over 5 years and they were diagnosed between 3 months and 14 years 3 months of age. Conclusions: The estimated incidence rate of FAS is lower than reported by similar studies and there was a wide variation in the age that cases were diagnosed. This, combined with the fact that many cases were notified and then withdrawn or excluded, suggests that in the UK there is a lack of consistency and certainty in diagnosing FAS. The study findings strongly support the need to educate key professionals involved in the care of infants and children at risk of FAS.
| Type: | Article |
|---|---|
| Title: | Fetal alcohol syndrome in the UK |
| Location: | England |
| Open access status: | An open access version is available from UCL Discovery |
| DOI: | 10.1136/archdischild-2023-325571 |
| Publisher version: | http://dx.doi.org/10.1136/archdischild-2023-325571 |
| Language: | English |
| Additional information: | Copyright © Author(s) (or their employer(s)) 2023. Re-use permitted under CC BY-NC. No commercial re-use. See rights and permissions. Published by BMJ. http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/. This is an open access article distributed in accordance with the Creative Commons Attribution Non Commercial (CC BY-NC 4.0) license, which permits others to distribute, remix, adapt, build upon this work non-commercially, and license their derivative works on different terms, provided the original work is properly cited, appropriate credit is given, any changes made indicated, and the use is non-commercial. See: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/. |
| UCL classification: | UCL UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Life and Medical Sciences UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Life and Medical Sciences > Faculty of Population Health Sciences > UCL GOS Institute of Child Health UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Life and Medical Sciences > Faculty of Population Health Sciences > UCL GOS Institute of Child Health > Population, Policy and Practice Dept |
| URI: | https://discovery.ucl.ac.uk/id/eprint/10187225 |
Archive Staff Only
 |
View Item |
