Top FASD Articles of 2024

The articles below were selected by a group of Canada FASD Research Network (CanFASD) staff, Research Leads, and Family Advisory Committee members to highlight some of the work that has been published over the last year in the field of FASD.

A search of Web of Science, PubMed, PsycInfo, CINAHL, Ovid Medline databases, and a manual search of selected scientific journals yielded over 354 unique articles published in 2024 on FASD and prenatal alcohol exposure. Many of these were excellent publications and the final list was narrowed down to focus on CanFASD’s areas of emphasis in FASD, categorized below. Additional considerations for what constituted the “top” articles included:

  • Generalizability to Canadians
  • Influence on practice or policy
  • Novelty
  • Scientific rigour
  • Media attention

Final selections were categorized by area of focus and limited to a maximum of three articles per category. Additional categories such as “Living Experience” and “Emerging Issues and Trends” were added this year to better reflect the focus of the selected articles. All articles are published in peer-reviewed journals. They are arranged in alphabetical order by first author’s surname, and those in bold are available in open access.

This year, we again excluded articles on maternal health and the prevention of FASD. Annually, the prevention Network Action Team (pNAT) creates an annotated bibliography of articles on maternal health and FASD prevention from around the world, organized by all the levels of prevention.

Neurodevelopment and Assessment/Diagnosis

  1. Bandoli, G., Coles, C., Kable, J., Jones, K. L., Wertelecki, W., Yevtushok, L., Zymak-Zakutnya, N., Granovska, I., Plotka, L., Chambers, C., & CIFASD (2024). Predicting fetal alcohol spectrum disorders in preschool-aged children from early life factors. Alcohol, clinical & experimental research, 48(1), 122–131. https://doi.org/10.1111/acer.15233
  2. Clark, C. A., Nakhid, D., Baldwin-Oneill, G., LaPointe, S., MacIsaac-Jones, M., Raja, S., & McMorris, C. A. (2024). Prevalence of co-occurring diagnoses in people exposed to alcohol prenatally: Findings from a meta-analysis. Journal of affective disorders, 358, 163–174. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jad.2024.05.035
  3. Popova, S., Dozet, D., Temple, V., McFarlane, A., Cook, J., & Burd, L. (2024). Fetal alcohol spectrum disorder diagnostic clinic capacity in Canadian Provinces and territories. PloS one, 19(4), e0301615. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0301615

Intervention

  1. Hilly, C., Wilson, P. H., Lucas, B., McGuckian, T. B., Swanton, R., & Froude, E. H. (2024). Effectiveness of interventions for school-aged-children and adolescents with fetal alcohol spectrum disorder: a systematic review and meta-analysis. Disability and rehabilitation, 46(9), 1708–1733. https://doi.org/10.1080/09638288.2023.2207043
  2. Kapasi, A., Pei, J., Flannigan, K., McLachlan, K., Oberlander, T., & Rasmussen, C. (2024). An examination of executive functioning in adolescents with FASD in a self-regulation intervention. Applied neuropsychology. Child, 1–9. Advance online publication. https://doi.org/10.1080/21622965.2024.2349301
  3. Speybroeck, E. L., Petrenko, C., Tapparello, C., Griffin, K., Hargrove, E., Himmelreich, M., Lutke, A., Lutke, C. J., May, M., Zhang, S., Looney, J., Kautz-Turnbull, C., & Rockhold, M. N. (2024). My Health Coach: Community members’ perspectives on a mobile health tool for adults with fetal alcohol spectrum disorders. Digital health, 10, 20552076241261458. https://doi.org/10.1177/20552076241261458

Service Providers

  1. Cole, L. L., Petrenko, C. L. M., Kautz-Turnbull, C., Rockhold, M. N., & Ciurzynski, S. M. (2024). Extension for Community Healthcare Outcomes fetal alcohol spectrum disorder (ECHO FASD): Tele-mentoring program to increase healthcare capacity for FASD diagnosis. Alcohol, clinical & experimental research, 48(1), 110–121. https://doi.org/10.1111/acer.15230
  2. Flannigan, K., Edwards, D. C., Murphy, L., & Pei, J. (2024). Integrated service delivery for individuals with fetal alcohol spectrum disorder. Journal of applied research in intellectual disabilities : JARID, 37(6), e13277. https://doi.org/10.1111/jar.13277
  3. Harding, K. D., Burns, C., Lafontaine, C., Wrath, A., Groom, A., Flannigan, K., Unsworth, K., & McFarlane, A. (2024). Challenges and strengths experienced by fetal alcohol spectrum disorder diagnostic clinics in Canada. Journal of intellectual & developmental disability, 49(3), 331–341. https://doi.org/10.3109/13668250.2023.2293336

Health and Wellbeing

  1. Coles, C. D., Shapiro, Z. R., Kable, J. A., Stoner, S. A., Ritfeld, G. J., & Grant, T. M. (2024). Prenatal alcohol exposure and health at midlife: Self-reported health outcomes in two cohorts. Alcohol, clinical & experimental research, 48(11), 2045–2059. https://doi.org/10.1111/acer.15441
  2. Howe, S. J., Flannigan, K., D. Harding, K., Badry, D., & A. McMorris, C. (2024). Preliminary findings from caregiver reports on suicidality and contextual risk factors in Canadian minoritized youth with fetal alcohol spectrum disorder. International Journal of Developmental Disabilities, 1–15. https://doi.org/10.1080/20473869.2024.2439721
  3. Lee, F., Almomani, Y., Denberg, H., Burman, A., Gault, S., Chaves, D., & Morton Ninomiya, M. E. (2024). The scope of supportive housing for adults with fetal alcohol spectrum disorder: a rapid review. International Journal of Developmental Disabilities, 1–16. https://doi.org/10.1080/20473869.2024.2380944

Caregivers/Families

  1. Gault, S., Gnat, L., Fletcher, P. C., Kirst, M., O’Neill, L., MacDonald, R., & Ninomiya, M. E. M. (2024). Current and ideal living arrangements and supports for Canadian adults with fetal alcohol spectrum disorder: Part II-Perspectives from caregivers. Alcohol, clinical & experimental research, 48(7), 1371–1382. https://doi.org/10.1111/acer.15337
  2. Gibbs, A. (2024). ‘No one believed us: no one came to help’: caregivers’ experiences of violence and abuse involving children with fetal alcohol spectrum disorder. Australian and New Zealand journal of family therapy, 45(1), 67-79. https://doi.org/10.1002/anzf.1575
  3. Skorka, K., Copley, J., McBryde, C., Meredith, P. J., & Reid, N. (2024). Caregivers’ perspectives of support needs for adolescents with fetal alcohol spectrum disorder. Children & Society. https://doi.org/10.1111/chso.12831

Living Experience

  1. Eodanable, M., Rhodes, S., & Cebula, K. (2024). “People talk about FASD diagnosis but barely any young people are asked about it”: Diagnosis perspectives and disability identity in adolescents with FASD. Children and Youth Services Review, 166, 107979. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.childyouth.2024.107979
  2. Hargrove, E., Lutke, C. J., Griffin, K., Himmelreich, M., Mitchell, J., Lutke, A., & Choate, P. (2024). FASD: The Living Experience of People with Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder—Results of an Anonymous Survey. Disabilities, 4(2), 332-347. https://doi.org/10.3390/disabilities4020022
  3. Ritfeld, G. J., Wang, M., Shapiro, Z., Kable, J. A., & Coles, C. D. (2024). Parenting by individuals with fetal alcohol spectrum disorders and neurobehavioral outcomes in their offspring. Alcohol, clinical & experimental research, 48(2), 400–408. https://doi.org/10.1111/acer.15256

Criminal Legal System

  1. Choate, P., Gromykin, R., & Northey, J. (2024). The Invisible Struggle: Parents with FASD, the Courts and the Child Intervention System. Social Sciences, 13(9), 497. https://doi.org/10.3390/socsci13090497
  2. Jewell, E., Dunleavy, B., Faitakis, M., Pun, J. W., Moss, S., Pei, J., Mela, M., Flannigan, K., Tremblay, M., & McLachlan, K. (2024). Screening and identification of fetal alcohol spectrum disorder in criminal legal settings: A realist review. Criminal behaviour and mental health : CBMH, 34(2), 208–270. https://doi.org/10.1002/cbm.2336
  3. Tremblay, M., Kemble, A., Kristiansen, D., Kraychy, Y., Pasic, J., & Pynoo, E. (2024). Innovating Services for Justice-Involved Individuals with Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder: The In Reach Project. Journal of Forensic Psychology Research and Practice, 25(3), 626–647. https://doi.org/10.1080/24732850.2024.2349229

Emerging Issues and Trends

  1. Engesether, B., Hoffner, M., Johnson, E., Klug, M. G., Popova, S., & Burd, L. (2024). Prevalence of fetal alcohol spectrum disorder in foster care: A scoping review. Alcohol, clinical & experimental research, 48(8), 1443–1450. https://doi.org/10.1111/acer.15394
  2. McQuire, C., Frennesson, N. F., Parsonage, J., Van der Heiden, M., Troy, D., & Zuccolo, L. (2024). Trends in fetal alcohol spectrum disorder research: A bibliometric review of original articles published between 2000 and 2023. Alcohol, clinical & experimental research, 48(10), 1819–1833. https://doi.org/10.1111/acer.15415
  3. Rockhold, M. N., Gimbel, B. A., Richardson, A. A., Kautz-Turnbull, C., Speybroeck, E. L., de Water, E., Myers, J., Hargrove, E., May, M., Abdi, S. S., & Petrenko, C. L. M. (2024). Racial and ethnic disparities in psychological care for individuals with FASD: a dis/ability studies and critical race theory perspective toward improving prevention, assessment/diagnosis, and intervention. Frontiers in public health, 12, 1355802. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpubh.2024.1355802

Brain Science

  1. Das, A., Duarte, K., Lebel, C., & Bento, M. (2024). Deep learning for detecting prenatal alcohol exposure in pediatric brain MRI: a transfer learning approach with explainability insights. Frontiers in computational neuroscience, 18, 1434421. https://doi.org/10.3389/fncom.2024.1434421
  2. Leung, E. C. H., Jain, P., Michealson, M. A., Choi, H., Ellsworth-Kopkowski, A., & Valenzuela, C. F. (2024). Recent breakthroughs in understanding the cerebellum’s role in fetal alcohol spectrum disorder: A systematic review. Alcohol (Fayetteville, N.Y.), 119, 37–71. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.alcohol.2023.12.003
  3. Long, M., Kar, P., Forkert, N. D., Landman, B. A., Gibbard, W. B., Tortorelli, C., McMorris, C. A., Huo, Y., & Lebel, C. A. (2024). Sex and age effects on gray matter volume trajectories in young children with prenatal alcohol exposure. Frontiers in human neuroscience, 18, 1379959. https://doi.org/10.3389/fnhum.2024.1379959

Animal Models of PAE

  1. Basel, A., Bhadsavle, S. S., Scaturro, K. Z., Parkey, G. K., Gaytan, M. N., Patel, J. J., Thomas, K. N., & Golding, M. C. (2024). Parental Alcohol Exposures Associate with Lasting Mitochondrial Dysfunction and Accelerated Aging in a Mouse Model. Aging and disease, 10.14336/AD.2024.0722. Advance online publication. https://doi.org/10.14336/AD.2024.0722
  2. Król, M., Skowron, P., Skowron, K., & Gil, K. (2024). The Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders-An Overview of Experimental Models, Therapeutic Strategies, and Future Research Directions. Children (Basel, Switzerland), 11(5), 531. https://doi.org/10.3390/children11050531
  3. Vargas-Foitzick, R., García-Ordenes, B., Iratchet, D., Acuña, A., Alcayaga, S., Fernández, C., Toledo, K., Rodríguez, M., Naranjo, C., Bustamante, R., & Haeger, P. A. (2024). Exercise reduces physical alterations in a rat model of fetal alcohol spectrum disorders. Biological research, 57(1), 41. https://doi.org/10.1186/s40659-024-00520-2

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Top FASD Articles of 2023
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