title: Neurobehavioral Deficits Consistent Across Age and Sex in Youth with Prenatal Alcohol Exposure.
abstract: Neurobehavioral consequences of heavy prenatal alcohol exposure are well documented; however, the role of age or sex in these effects has not been studied. The current study examined the effects of prenatal alcohol exposure, sex, and age on neurobehavioral functioning in children.
  
  
  
  Subjects were 407 youth with prenatal alcohol exposure (n = 192) and controls (n = 215). Two age groups (child [5 to 7 years] or adolescent [10 to 16 years]) and both sexes were included. All subjects completed standardized neuropsychological testing, and caregivers completed parent-report measures of psychopathology and adaptive behavior. Neuropsychological functioning, psychopathology, and adaptive behavior were analyzed with separate 2 (exposure history) × 2 (sex) × 2 (age) multivariate analyses of variance (MANOVAs). Significant effects were followed by univariate analyses.
  
  
  
  No 3-way or 2-way interactions were significant. The main effect of group was significant in all 3 MANOVAs, with the control group performing better than the alcohol-exposed group on all measures. The main effect of age was significant for neuropsychological performance and adaptive functioning across exposure groups with younger children performing better than older children on 3 measures (language, communication, socialization). Older children performed better than younger children on a different language measure. The main effect of sex was significant for neuropsychological performance and psychopathology; across exposure groups, males had stronger language and visual spatial scores and fewer somatic complaints than females.
  
  
  
  Prenatal alcohol exposure resulted in impaired neuropsychological and behavioral functioning. Although adolescents with prenatal alcohol exposure may perform more poorly than younger exposed children, the same was true for nonexposed children. Thus, these cross-sectional data indicate that the developmental trajectory for neuropsychological and behavioral performance is not altered by prenatal alcohol exposure, but rather, deficits are consistent across the 2 age groups tested. Similarly, observed sex differences on specific measures were consistent across the groups and do not support sexually dimorphic effects in these domains.
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychology, Center for Behavioral Teratology, San Diego State University, San Diego, California.
authors.forename: Amy L
authors.initials: AL
authors.lastname: Panczakiewicz
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychology, Center for Behavioral Teratology, San Diego State University, San Diego, California.
authors.forename: Leila
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Glass
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Emory University School of Medicine, Atlanta, Georgia.|Department of Pediatrics, Emory University School of Medicine, Atlanta, Georgia.
authors.forename: Claire D
authors.initials: CD
authors.lastname: Coles
authors.affiliation: Department of Pediatrics, Emory University School of Medicine, Atlanta, Georgia.
authors.forename: Julie A
authors.initials: JA
authors.lastname: Kable
authors.affiliation: Department of Pediatrics, Developmental Cognitive Neuroimaging Laboratory, Keck School of Medicine, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, California.|Division of Research on Children, Youth, and Families, Department of Pediatrics, Children's Hospital Los Angeles, Los Angeles, California.
authors.forename: Elizabeth R
authors.initials: ER
authors.lastname: Sowell
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychiatry, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, Minnesota.
authors.forename: Jeffrey R
authors.initials: JR
authors.lastname: Wozniak
authors.affiliation: Department of Pediatrics, School of Medicine, University of California, San Diego, San Diego, California.
authors.forename: Kenneth Lyons
authors.initials: KL
authors.lastname: Jones
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychology, Center for Behavioral Teratology, San Diego State University, San Diego, California.
authors.forename: Edward P
authors.initials: EP
authors.lastname: Riley
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychology, Center for Behavioral Teratology, San Diego State University, San Diego, California.
authors.forename: Sarah N
authors.initials: SN
authors.lastname: Mattson
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000294:Adolescent Behavior / Q000523:psychology*; D000367:Age Factors; D000428:Alcohol Drinking / Q000009:adverse effects* / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000523:psychology*; D002648:Child; D002653:Child Behavior Disorders / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000523:psychology*; D002675:Child, Preschool; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D009483:Neuropsychological Tests; D011247:Pregnancy; D011297:Prenatal Exposure Delayed Effects / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000523:psychology*; D012737:Sex Factors; D016037:Single-Blind Method
keywords: Age; Behavior; Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders; Neuropsychological Function; Sex