Brief Intervention for Alcohol Use by Pregnant WomenAmerican Journal of Public Health February 2007, Vol 97, No. 2, 252-258
We examined the efficacy of brief intervention as a technique to help pregnant women achieve abstinence from alcohol. A second aim was to assess newborn outcomes as a function of brief intervention.
Women in the brief intervention condition were 5 times more likely to report abstinence after intervention compared with women in the assessment-only condition. Newborns whose mothers received brief intervention had higher birthweights and birth lengths, and fetal mortality rates were 3 times lower (0.9%) compared with newborns in the assessment-only (2.9%) condition.
The success of brief intervention conducted in a community setting by nonmedical professionals has significant implications for national public health policies.
Reprint Request E-mail: moconnor@mednet.ucla.edu
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