BEHAVIORAL, EEG, AND MRI EVALUATION OF PRENATAL ALCOHOL

胎儿酒精综合征(FAS)包括出生前和出生后的生长发育 发育迟缓，一种典型的面部畸形和中枢神经 系统功能障碍。中枢神经系统功能障碍是可变的，但通常是 特点是智商低，注意力不集中，多动， 冲动、运动损伤、反应性和 习惯化。重要的是，正是这些中枢神经系统功能障碍 对儿童和医疗保健系统的影响最大。也有好的 有证据表明，没有Fas但接触过Fas的儿童 孕期大量饮酒也显示出中枢神经系统的证据 功能障碍。迄今为止，对儿童中枢神经系统功能障碍的研究 孕期接触酒精的历史主要集中在 认知功能的单独测试，如智商测试。有 只有几项研究用来评估大脑功能 电生理技术和这些研究几乎 专门评估的婴儿。最后，我们对结构的了解 产前酒精暴露对人类中枢神经系统的损害 从有限数量的Fas儿童的尸检材料中 出生后不久就去世了。关于活着的大脑的数据很少 使用核磁共振等现代成像技术的Fas儿童 成像(MRI)。 这项提议采用了多学科方法。患有和的儿童 没有已知有重度孕期酒精暴露史的Fas 将使用全面的神经心理学电池进行评估， 接受核磁共振扫描以确定哪些大脑区域可能特别 对产前酒精暴露的易感性和评估 电生理异常。基于试点数据，特别是 重点将放在两个大脑区域。基底节和 穹窿体部。尽管人们普遍认为有必要 用于行为障碍和大脑之间的相关性研究 异常，这些研究根本不存在于人类身上 人口。通过使用多学科方法并利用 在不同的技术中，我们希望能够解决这个问题。

Fetal alcohol syndrome (FAS) consists of pre- and postnatal growth retardation, a characteristic facial dysmorphology, and central nervous system dysfunction. The CNS dysfunction is variable but is often characterized by low IQ scores, attention deficits, hyperactivity, impulsivity, motor impairments, and alterations in reactivity and habituation. Importantly, it is these CNS dysfunctions that have the most impact on the child and the health care system. There is also good evidence to suggest that children without FAS but who were exposed gestationally to large amounts of alcohol also display evidence of a CNS dysfunction. To date, research on these CNS dysfunctions in children with histories of gestational alcohol exposure has primarily focused on isolated tests of cognitive functioning, such as IQ tests. There have only been a few studies evaluating brain functioning using electrophysiological techniques and these studies have almost exclusively assessed infants. Finally, what we know about structural damage to the CNS in humans exposed to alcohol prenatally has resulted from a limited amount of autopsy material from FAS children who have died shortly after birth. There are scant data on the brains of living FAS children using modern imaging techniques, such as magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). This proposal utilizes a multidisciplinary approach. Children with and without FAS with known histories of heavy gestational alcohol exposure will be assessed using a comprehensive neuropsychological battery, undergo an MRI scan to determine which brain areas may be particularly susceptible to prenatal alcohol exposure and evaluated for electrophysiological abnormalities. Based upon pilot data, special emphasis will be given to two brain areas. the basal ganglia and the corpus callosum. Despite widespread acknowledgment that there is a need for correlational studies between behavioral dysfunction and brain abnormalities, these studies simply do not exist in the human population. By using a multidisciplinary approach and taking advantage of different technologies, we hope to be able to address this problem.