CHILDREN WITH FETAL ALCOHOL SYNDROME IN NORTH-DAKOTA - A CASE-CONTROLSTUDY UTILIZING BIRTH CERTIFICATE DATA

A retrospective case control study utilizing birth certificate data in a population of children with Fetal Alcohol Syndrome (FAS) or Fetal A lcohol Effect (FAE) and controls in North Dakota was completed Using t he North Dakota FAS registry, 97 cases of FAS and FAE aged birth-18yea rs of age were identified. The North Dakota Department of Vital Record s then searched for the child's birth certificates. For each case chil d, four controls were selected from the birth records. The controls we re of the same race, sex, month and county of birth as the cases. Birt h certificates for 68 children were identified, 44 with FAS and 24 wit h FAE. When compared with the FAE group, the FAS group had lower birth weights and mothers who began prenatal care later in pregnancy. The F AS/FAE group combined had mothers who were older, were move likely to be unmarried had less weight gain during pregnancy, started prenatal c are later in pregnancy and had fewer prenatal visits compared to contr ols. The FAS/FAE children had lower birth weights and higher rates of sibling deaths. The use of birth certificate data is a. useful data so urce to compare maternal, paternal and prenatal characteristics for a population of children with FAS/FAE.