Delayed auditory processing found in fetal alcohol syndrome

October 5, 2012 in Addiction

Delayed auditory processing found in fetal alcohol syndrome

Preschool children with fetal alcohol spectrum disorder display delays in auditory processing, which may serve as a useful neural marker of information processing difficulties, according to research published in the October issue of Alcoholism: Clinical & Experimental Research.

(HealthDay)—Preschool children with fetal alcohol spectrum disorder (FASD) display delays in auditory processing, which may serve as a useful neural marker of information processing difficulties, according to research published in the October issue of Alcoholism: Clinical & Experimental Research.

Julia M. Stephen, Ph.D., of The Mind Research Network in Albuquerque, N.M., and colleagues measured the neurophysiological responses to auditory stimuli of 10 children aged 3 to 6 years with FASD and 15 healthy controls. A 72 decibel tone at 1,000 Hz was used, and neurophysiological response was measured using magnetoencephalography (MEG).

The researchers found that, compared with healthy control children, children with FASD showed significant delays in auditory M100 and M200 latencies. This latency delay occurred in the auditory cortex and was present in preschool-aged children across all FASD subtypes.

"Auditory delay revealed by MEG in children with FASDs may prove to be a useful neural marker of difficulties in young children with prenatal alcohol exposure. The fact that delayed auditory responses were observed across the FASD spectrum suggests that it may be a sensitive measure of alcohol-induced brain damage," the authors write. "Therefore, this measure in conjunction with other clinical tools may prove useful for early identification of -affected children, particularly those without dysmorphia."

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Sinister1811
Oct 06, 2012

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Great. So, in future, many children with Auditory Processing Disorder will be automatically diagnosed with FAS. That's ridiculous. The problem is that they understand so little about this disorder [still], and yet, they're jumping the gun, and linking it to another condition that shows similar symptoms. There are children with Auditory Processing Disorder who are genetically predisposed to the condition, and it can run in families. You can also develop APD as a result of recurrent ear infections, for example. People have even developed this later in life. The cause is UNKNOWN.

This "study" is basically like saying that ADHD is proof of Autism Spectrum Disorders.

I have had similar problems, where I've had to ask people what they've just said, because I didn't get it the first time. Certain speech, at times, sounds like gibberish, or I'll hear certain WRONG words in a conversation and be like "wtf?". This often happens when certain words sound like other words. It can be frustrating.
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fetal alcohol spectrum disorder, preschool children, information processing, alcohol, children, alcohol
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