Extreme prematurity: an alcohol-related birth effect.

Background: Rates of preterm delivery, a major proximate cause of perinatal morbidity and mortality, have been increasing. Prenatal alcohol exposure has been implicated in preterm delivery, although results have been inconsistent due to inadequate control for confounding factors, insufficient power, unreliable and inaccurate assessment of both exposure and gestational age, and lack of stratification of prematurity into severity levels. The purpose of this study was to examine the relation between maternal alcohol, cocaine and cigarette use during pregnancy, and extreme and mild preterm birth.

The role of maternal acceptance in the relation between community violence exposure and child functioning.

Children in the United States are exposed to considerable community violence that has been linked to child functioning. However, not all those exposed, experience negative outcomes. Recent research has focused on factors that "buffer" or protect children from negative consequences of violence exposure.

Somatic complaints in children and community violence exposure.

Somatic complaints of children in primary care settings often go unexplained despite attempts to determine a cause. Recent research has linked violence exposure to stress symptomatology and associated somatic problems. Unknown, however, is whether specific physical symptom complaints can be attributed, at least in part, to violence exposure.

Gender and alcohol moderate caregiver reported child behavior after prenatal cocaine.

Objective: The concurrence of prenatal alcohol exposure with other drug exposure, low socioeconomic status and environmental risk factors may obscure associations, if any, between prenatal cocaine exposure and child outcomes. This study evaluates the effects of prenatal cocaine exposure on child behavior in analyses stratified by gender and prenatal alcohol exposure status.

Methods: Maternal alcohol, cigarette, and illicit drug use were prospectively assessed by interview during pregnancy and postnatally.

Gender and alcohol moderate prenatal cocaine effects on teacher-report of child behavior.

Prenatal cocaine exposure has been associated with behavior problems at school age. However, the correspondence between use of cocaine and alcohol during pregnancy is often high, making appropriate allocation of variance and control for other exposures and their interactions difficult. Additionally, gender-specific effects are not typically reported.

Prenatal exposure to binge drinking and cognitive and behavioral outcomes at age 7 years.

Objective: The goal of this study was to examine differential effects of amount and pattern of prenatal alcohol exposure on child outcome.

Study Design: Alcohol use was assessed at each prenatal visit, and IQ and behavior were measured at age 7 years.

Results: After control for confounders, the amount of exposure was unrelated to IQ score and behavior for >500 black 7-year-old children.