Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder

Welcome to the Health Portfolio's web site home for information on Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder (FASD).

The Public Health Agency of Canada has developed this site to provide basic information on FASD and to let you know what we're doing about FASD. This site also contains up-to-date news on FASD, as well as links to important resources.

Fetal Alcohol Syndrome/Fetal Alcohol Effects (FAS/FAE) is now referred to as Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder (FASD).

Spotlight on...

Alcohol Use and Pregnancy Consensus Clinical Guidelines

The August edition of the Journal of Obstetrics and Gynaecology Canada features a new consensus clinical practice guideline which recommends that screening for alcohol consumption be done periodically for all pregnant women and women of child-bearing age. This new guideline, developed by the Society of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists of Canada (SOGC) and funded by the Public Health Agency of Canada, is based on a comprehensive review of scientific evidence and best-practice methods related to prevention initiatives and screening tools, to encourage their appropriate use in clinical practice. The guideline will increase the ability of health professionals to offer information and counseling about risks of alcohol consumption prior to conception, throughout pregnancy and while breastfeeding.

The Society of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists of Canada

Economic Impact

• Highlights of Second National Roundtable on the Development of a Canadian Model for Calculating the Economic Impact of FASD: Youth Justice Component (February 2008)
• National Roundtable On the Development of a Canadian Model for Calculating the Economic Impact of FASD ( May 2007)

General Information

• Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder (FASD) Prevention: Canadian Perspectives (2008)
• A series of 12 fact sheets in a kit folder (2007)

Training

• Alcohol & Pregnancy Important Learning Opportunity
  For further information please click on www.MDcme.ca

Government Response

• Government Response to the Second Report of the Standing Committee on Health: Even One is Too Many: A Call for a Comprehensive Action Plan On Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder
• Message from Tony Clement, Minister of Health - International Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder Awareness Day 2007

Reports

• Alcohol Use During Pregnancy and Awareness of Fetal Alcohol Syndrome and Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder (2006) - Results of a National Survey (2006)
• Fetal alcohol spectrum disorder: Canadian guidelines for diagnosis
• Mapping FASD Training Opportunities in Canada: An Environmental Scan (2006)
• Research Update: Alcohol Use and Pregnancy - An Important Canadian Public Health & Social Issue (2006)
• Summary Report: National Forum on the FASD Diagnostic Guidelines (2006)
• Summary Report: National Thematic Workshop on FASD (2006)
• What We Have Learned : Key Canadian FASD Awareness Campaigns (2006)