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Monday, December 22, 2008

Characterization of White Matter Microstructure in Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders
Alcoholism: Clinical and Experimental Research Published Online: 22 Dec 2008

Exposure to alcohol during gestation is associated with CNS alterations, cognitive deficits, and behavior problems. This study investigated microstructural aspects of putative white matter abnormalities following prenatal alcohol exposure.

Prenatal alcohol exposure was associated with low FA in multiple cerebral areas, including the body of the corpus callosum and white matter innervating bilateral medial frontal and occipital lobes. Fewer between-group differences in MD were observed.

These data provide an account of cerebral white matter microstructural integrity in fetal alcohol spectrum disorders and support extant literature showing that white matter is a target of alcohol teratogenesis. The white matter anomalies characterized in this study may relate to the neurobehavioral sequelae associated with gestational alcohol exposure, especially in areas of executive dysfunction and visual processing deficits.

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