Call 888-647-0579 to speak with an alcohol or drug abuse counselor.

Who Answers?

Fetal Alcohol Disorders Often Misdiagnosed as ADHD

Children with fetal alcohol spectrum disorders (FASD) are often initially diagnosed with attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder, since the two problems can manifest in similar ways, a new study shows.

However, children with FASD have more difficulty interpreting social information than children with ADHD, and this results in more severe behavioral problems, the researchers found.

The study also found that children with fetal alcohol spectrum disorders (FASD) have a high risk of psychiatric problems.

“Behaviorally, FASD and ADHD can look quite similar, particularly with respect to problems with very limited attention, physical restlessness and extreme impulsivity,” study author Rachel Greenbaum, a clinical psychologist with the Children’s Mental Health Team at Surrey Place Centre in Toronto, Canada, said in a news release.

ADHA may be confused with FASD.

The study of 33 children with FASD, 30 children with ADHD and 34 children without disorders focused on their social cognition and emotion-processing abilities. Social cognition is the ability to consider and differentiate between the beliefs, thoughts, feelings and intentions of oneself and others. Emotion processing is the ability to understand and process information related to feelings.

“Our findings show that … overall, children with FASD have more severe behavioral problems. In terms of social cognition and emotional processing, the core deficit in FASD appears to be in understanding and interpreting another’s mental states and emotions,” study corresponding author Joanne Rovet, a professor at the University of Toronto and senior scientist in neurosciences and mental health at the Hospital for Sick Children.

These problems with social cognition and emotion processing “may underlie the severe conduct problems” seen in children with FASD, including behaviors such as lying, cheating and stealing, she suggested.

“It is imperative that these children receive assistance in social and emotional processing domains, specifically targeting interventions to deal with their unique deficits,” Rovet said.

The study, which appears online, will be published in the October print issue of Alcoholism: Clinical & Experimental Research.

source: Health Scout

More Treatment & Detox Articles

Are Alcohol Abuse Treatment Centers the Only Option for Recovery?

While traditional alcohol abuse treatment centers operate off of standardized treatment methods, not everyone can benefit from a standardized treatment approach. As different people have different treatment needs, alternative alcohol abuse treatment centers try to approach alcohol recovery from a less restrictive perspective. Alternative alcohol abuse treatment centers offer services more geared towards specific aspects….

Drug Treatment Center Facts

Various myths surround drug treatment center news and information but do you know the facts? If you are considering drug treatment for yourself or a loved one then you have got to know the facts associated with drug treatment centers to assure that you understand both what you are getting into as well as what….

Drinking and driving is a growing problem

With the holiday season upon is, law enforcement officers are taking measures to make sure the roads are safe. The reason, they say, is that South Carolina leads the nation when it comes to drinking and driving. And that, they say, is no laughing matter. The Palmetto State is second in the country when it….

How Inpatient Alcohol Treatment Centers Treat Alcoholism

In 2006, excess alcohol use accounted for an estimated 80,000 deaths making alcoholism the third leading lifestyle-related cause of death in the United States, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. For each of these deaths, researchers estimate an average of 30 years of potential life lost per death due to excess alcohol….

The language of intoxication: The term 'drunk' doesn't really cut it any more

The language that drinkers typically use to describe alcohol’s effects on them are quite different from the language used by alcohol researchers, no doubt limiting researchers’ understanding of self-reported alcohol use. New findings show that researchers could do well to tap into a wide spectrum of terms used by drinkers to describe their levels of….