A CRITICAL REVIEW of “Prevalence of Fetal Alcohol Syndrome in the Top End of the Northern Territory. ” KR Harris and IK Bucens; Prevalence of fetal alcohol syndrome in the Top End of the Northern

umerous previous studies in North America have found that rates of Fetal Alcohol Syndrome (FAS) are substantially higher in native populations than in the overall population.1,2 The prevalence of FAS has not been well studied in Australia, which has a large indigenous population experiencing similar social problems as their counterparts in North America. The objective of this study was to establish the prevalence of FAS in the Top End of the Northern Territory (NT), Australia, in both indigenous and non-indigenous populations. The study was a retrospective chart review of medical records and outpatient letters of children seen by the Royal Darwin Hospital Paediatric staff between 1990 and 2000. Children were eligible if they lived in the Top End of the NT, which is 200,000 km.2 Subjects that were identified were placed into 6 categories: 1. FAS with confirmed alcohol exposure. 2. FAS without confirmed alcohol exposure. 3. Partial FAS – alcohol exposure confirmed. 4. Alcohol-related neurodevelopmental disorder (ARND). a) Microcephaly, alcohol exposure unknown. b) Microcephaly, unrelated to alcohol exposure. 5. Other. Cases were defined as having alcohol exposure, facial anomolies, growth retardation, and CNS anomalies. Partial FAS was defined as having alcohol exposure plus two of three of the FAS characteristics. The case definitions were adapted from previou