2014 By Andrew M. Seaman
NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - Children who are diagnosed with fetal alcohol spectrum disorder are at higher risk of having impaired gross motor skills, according to a review of past studies.
Balance, coordination and ball skills were the areas where children exposed to alcohol in the womb had the most problems, researchers found.
“This is biologically plausible as alcohol is a teratogen which causes damage to the developing brain,” Barbara Lucas told Reuters Health in an email. “Areas of the brain that may be damaged include those which are important for motor control.”
The researchers found 14 studies to include in the analysis and were able to combine data from 10 of those studies.
Overall, the odds of a child having gross motor skill impairment tripled when the child had a FASD diagnosis or was exposed to a moderate to heavy amount of alcohol while in the womb.
