COMPARING DAILY LIVING SKILLS IN ADULTS WITH FETAL ALCOHOL SPECTRUM DISORDER (FASD) TO AN IQ MATCHED CLINICAL SAMPLE
Main Article Content
Keywords
Fetal Alcohol, FASD, daily living skills, adaptive behaviour, adult
Abstract
Background
Prenatal alcohol exposure is an established risk factor for cognitive deficits. Adults with FASD also have deficits in their Adaptive Daily Living skills (ADLs) relative to age-appropriate norms, but the degree to which this can be attributed to cognitive deficits is unclear.
Objectives
To examine ADLs in adults with FASD and compare them to a group of clinic referred individuals with similar IQ scores but without FASD.
Methods
Fifteen adults with FASD and 15 IQ matched controls were included. Wechsler Intelligence tests were used to measure IQ, and the Adaptive Behavior Assessment System-II (ABAS-II) was used to measure ADLs.
Results
Compared to IQ matched controls, individuals with FASD had significantly lower overall ADLs (p=.03). Mean scores across all sub-domains on the ABAS-II were lower for the FASD group. Mean standard scores for ADLs in the FASD group were 11 points lower than mean IQ. In the control group, the difference was only 2 points.
Conclusions
Adults with FASD may have lower daily living skills than individuals with similar IQ scores. This suggests that IQ is not a good predictor of ADLs in adults with FASD.
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