Alcohol Use in Pregnancy

• Published in: Clinical obstetrics and gynecology Vol. 62; no. 1; pp. 142 - 155
• Main Authors: DEJONG, KATHERINE, OLYAEI, AMY, LO, JAMIE O
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: United States Copyright Wolters Kluwer Health, Inc. All rights reserved 01-03-2019
• Subjects: Alcohol Drinking - adverse effects; Alcohol Drinking - epidemiology; Alcoholic Beverages - statistics & numerical data; Animals; Breast Feeding - adverse effects; Female; Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders - epidemiology; Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders - etiology; Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders - prevention & control; Humans; Pregnancy; Prenatal Exposure Delayed Effects - prevention & control; Surveys and Questionnaires
• ISSN: 0009-9201; 1532-5520
• DOI: 10.1097/GRF.0000000000000414

Alcohol exposure during pregnancy results in impaired growth, stillbirth, and fetal alcohol spectrum disorder. Fetal alcohol deficits are lifelong issues with no current treatment or established diagnostic or therapeutic tools to prevent and/or ameliorate some of these adverse outcomes. Despite the recommendation to abstain, almost half of the women consume alcohol in pregnancy in the United States. This review focuses on the trends in prenatal alcohol exposure, implications for maternal and fetal health, and evidence suggesting that preconception and the prenatal period provide a window of opportunity to intervene, mitigate, and ideally curtail the lifetime effects of fetal alcohol spectrum disorder.