PREGNANT-WOMEN WITH NEGATIVE ALCOHOL SCREENS DO DRINK LESS - A PROSPECTIVE-STUDY

The authors examined the antepartum alcohol consumption of 100 women w ith negative alcohol screens as they Initiated prenatal care. Subjects completed a comprehensive assessment of their alcohol use at 15.7 +/- . 4.9 weeks gestation and again 2 months after delivery, with 96% foll ow-up. The majority (87%) were abstinent in the 90-day period before s tudy enrollment, while pregnant. Moreover; 92% drank no alcohol in the interval between study enrollment and delivery. These results are com pared with the antepartum alcohol consumption of 250 women with positi ve alcohol screens. Routine prenatal screening can efficiently identif y those at risk for alcohol consumption in the antepartum.