DistantNews
Support us
🇱🇹 Lithuania /Health & Science

Alcohol during pregnancy can affect a child’s behavior, professor says

From Delfi · () Lithuanian

Translated from Lithuanian and summarized by DistantNews. Read the original for the full story.

At a glance

News Official statement Context piece
  • Fetal alcohol spectrum disorders can affect attention, memory, learning, emotional regulation, impulse control and planning.
  • Children’s difficulties may be mistaken for disobedience, poor parenting or a lack of motivation, making early recognition important.
  • Klaipėda University Hospital is working with German and Polish partners to strengthen multidisciplinary diagnosis and adapt international methods for Lithuania.

A child who struggles to concentrate, forgets information moments after hearing it, reacts impulsively and repeatedly makes the same mistakes may not simply be disobedient or unmotivated. In some cases, these difficulties may reflect fetal alcohol spectrum disorders, or FASD.

FASD can result from alcohol exposure during pregnancy and affect the development of the central nervous system. Its effects may involve attention, memory, learning, emotional regulation, impulsivity, planning and the ability to understand the consequences of one’s actions.

FASD should be assessed as a spectrum of disorders: its signs can vary greatly and are not always apparent.

· Linas RovasThe Klaipėda University Hospital doctor explained why FASD may be difficult to recognize.

The signs are not always obvious. “FASD should be assessed as a spectrum of disorders: its signs can vary greatly and are not always apparent,” said Linas Rovas, an obstetrician-gynecologist at Klaipėda University Hospital. One person may mainly experience learning or memory problems, while another may have difficulties with attention, emotional regulation, impulsivity or behavior.

A person may know how they should behave, but impaired executive functions can make it difficult to apply this knowledge in practice.

· Linas RovasHe described how FASD can affect behavior and everyday functioning.

Rovas said people with FASD may know how they are expected to behave but struggle to apply that knowledge because of impaired executive functions. Symptoms can also resemble other developmental disorders, which means diagnosis requires a comprehensive assessment and cooperation among specialists.

Klaipėda University Hospital is working with partners from Germany and Poland through the international FASD-Bridge project. The initiative aims to combine professional expertise, share experience and develop methods that can improve FASD recognition in Lithuania. The hospital says international cooperation can help strengthen diagnostic practice, which is still being developed in the country, and ensure earlier support for children and their families.

FASD diagnosis is complex and requires cooperation among specialists from different fields.

· Klaipėda University Hospital’s Women and Children’s ClinicThe clinic described the need for multidisciplinary assessment and international cooperation.
About this summary

Originally published by Delfi in Lithuanian. Translated, summarized, and contextualized automatically by DistantNews, with a note on how the source frames the story. Not individually reviewed before publishing. How this works.

More Stories

From Our Blog