Congenital Malformations in Offspring of a Chronic Alcoholic Mother

Abstract

Three cases in one family—a girl and monozygotic girl twins, the offspring of a chronic alcoholic mother —are presented. They show a pattern of prenatal onset of growth deficiency and developmental delay, with microcephaly, small palpebral fissures, and multiple minor anomalies, recently described in a series of 11 unrelated cases by Jones et al. and named by them the "fetal alcohol syndrome." After considering alternative theories, we conclude, with them, that the cases demonstrate an association between the maternal alcohol intake and the abnormalities found in the offspring. We report these three cases in confirmation of their findings.