Facial memory deficits in children with fetal alcohol spectrum disorders

Abstract

Prenatal exposure to alcohol may lead to a range of neurobehavioral effects, including impaired learning and memory. Although children with fetal alcohol spectrum disorders (FASD) exhibit both verbal and nonverbal memory impairments, their memory for faces has not been as thoroughly investigated and the extent literature provides inconsistent results. The aim of the current study was to determine whether difficulties in face memory exist in children with FASD and whether the difficulties are mediated by task demands. To address this, we used two measures of immediate and delayed facial recognition memory, the Children's Memory Scale (CMS) and Test of Memory and Learning (TOMAL). Compared to typically developing controls, children with FASD showed memory deficits on all tests and were more likely to perform in a clinically significant range. As well, children performed more poorly on the CMS compared to TOMAL, a finding consistent with the greater difficulty of the CMS task. Our results are consistent with our hypothesis that children with FASD show impairment in facial memory, particularly on demanding memory tasks.

Keywords:

• FASD/Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder
• Memory
• Cognition
• Face Processing
• Prenatal alcohol exposure

Acknowledgments

Support and funding from the Canadian Foundation for Fetal Alcohol Research (CFFAR) grant to JR, Ontario Mental Health Foundation Post-Doctoral Fellowship to ES, Ontario Student Opportunity Trust Fund and Hospital for Sick Children RESTRACOMP scholarship to SW, and Natural Science and Engineering Research Council to SS. We acknowledge Anishka Leis, Victoria Martin, Rosie Bell, Dragana Ostojic, Diana Angel, Ameeta Dhudani, and the Motherisk staff at the Hospital for Sick Children.