The impact of prenatal alcohol exposure on frontal cortex development in utero

OBJECTIVE: Whether prenatal alcohol exposure was associated with a reductio n in the frontal cortex was examined. STUDY DESIGN: Pregnant women (n = 167) received multiple ultrasonographic a ssessments. During the assessment, brain structures were visualized and mea sured, including the distance from the posterior margin of the cavum to the calvarium, the distance from the posterior margin of the thalamus to the c alvarium, the transcerebellar diameter, and the biparietal diameter. RESULTS: Regression analyses and odds ratios demonstrated that alcohol expo sure was associated with a reduction in the frontal cortex, but not other b rain structures. Strikingly, the percent of fetuses with a frontal cortex b elow the 10th percentile increased from 4% for nonexposed fetuses to 23% fo r heavily exposed fetuses. CONCLUSION: There was a relationship between frontal brain size and materna l alcohol consumption, suggesting that ultrasonography may be a sensitive t ool for detecting alcohol-induced changes in the fetal brain.