%0 Journal Article
%T A survey of Italian and Spanish neonatologists and paediatricians regarding awareness of the diagnosis of FAS and FASD and maternal ethanol use during pregnancy
%A F Vagnarelli
%A I Palmi
%A O Garc¨Şa-Algar
%A M Falcon
%A L Memo
%A L Tarani
%A R Spoletini
%A R Pacifici
%A C Mortali
%A A Pierantozzi
%A S Pichini
%J BMC Pediatrics
%D 2011
%I BioMed Central
%R 10.1186/1471-2431-11-51
%X A multiple-choice anonymous questionnaire was e-mailed to Italian neonatologists registered in the mailing list of the corresponding Society and administered to Italian and Spanish paediatricians during their National Congress.The response rate was 16% (63/400) for the Italian neonatologists of the National Society while a total of 152 Spanish and 41 Italian paediatricians agreed to complete the questionnaire during National Congress. Over 90% of the surveyed physicians declared that FAS is an identifiable syndrome and over 60% of them identified at least one of the most important features of FAS. Although over 60% Italian responders and around 80% Spanish responders were aware that ethanol use in pregnancy is dangerous, approximately 50% Italian responders and 40% Spanish ones allowed women to drink sometimes a glass of wine or beer during pregnancy.Neonatologists and paediatricians rated confidence in the ability to diagnosis FAS and FASD as low, with over 50% responders feeling they needed more information regarding FAS and FASD identification in newborn and child.Italian and Spanish neonatologists and paediatricians do not feel confident about diagnosing FAS and FASD. More training is needed in order to accurately diagnose ethanol use during pregnancy and correctly inform pregnant women on the consequences on the newborn.Italy and Spain are two Mediterranean countries which, due to their position in Europe, are the centre of both industrial and cultural vitality, attracting tourists, business people and immigrants. In the past 20 years, the lifestyles of the Italian and Spanish population have changed radically, especially those of women, who have adopted behaviour models traditionally associated with men. Among the most important changes there has been the increasing number of women who smoke, and more recently, who drink, reflecting their changing role in the society [1].The available data from the most recent Italian National Surveys on use and abuse of alcoh
%U http://www.biomedcentral.com/1471-2431/11/51