Structural and functional brain integrity of fetal alcohol syndrome in nonretarded cases.

PURPOSE: To determine the structural and functional integrity of the brain in a sample of nonretarded individuals diagnosed with fetal alcohol syndrome.

SUBJECTS: The sample consisted of nineteen individuals who met the diagnostic criteria for fetal alcohol syndrome.

METHODS

Intellectual function was assessed using the Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale-Revised. Structural integrity of the brain was assessed using magnetic resonance imaging whereas functional integrity was assessed using positron emission tomography and (18)F-fluorodeoxyglucose.

RESULTS

The mean Full Scale IQ was 80. 2 (range: 66-92). Only 1 magnetic resonance imaging was found to be abnormal. This abnormality was found for the subject with the lowest IQ. Decreases in relative regional cerebral metabolic rates were found in 5 brain regions comprising the thalamus and basal ganglia.

CONCLUSION

These results when coupled with previous findings suggest a continuum of neuropathology in fetal alcohol syndrome. For cases with relatively mild intellectual deficits, the cause of the deficit is at a micro-level rather than a macro-level.