SynthesisJournal of child psychology and psychiatry, and allied disciplines2016
Research Review: Executive function deficits in fetal alcohol spectrum disorders and attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder - a meta-analysis.
Synthesis in Journal of child psychology and psychiatry, and allied disciplines, 2016. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 58 papers, 5 of them syntheses that pooled it.
What it found
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The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
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Who cites it
58 citing papers in PubMed, 5 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 127 citations in OpenAlex.
- Executive function in children with neurodevelopmental conditions: a systematic review and meta-analysis.Nature human behaviour · 2024Pooled it
- Prenatal alcohol exposure and associations with physical size, dysmorphology and neurodevelopment: a systematic review and meta-analysis.BMC medicine · 2024Pooled it
- Contributions of Zebrafish Studies to the Behavioural Consequences of Early Alcohol Exposure: A Systematic Review.Current neuropharmacology · 2022Pooled it
- Effects of prenatal alcohol exposure on cognitive and behavioral development: Findings from a hierarchical meta-analysis of data from six prospective longitudinal U.S. cohorts.Alcoholism, clinical and experimental research · 2021Pooled it
- Meta-Analyses of Externalizing Disorders: Genetics or Prenatal Alcohol Exposure?Alcoholism, clinical and experimental research · 2018Pooled it
- Non-pharmacological executive function interventions for children and adolescents with neurodevelopmental disorders: a systematic review and network meta-analysis.EClinicalMedicine · 2026Article
- Article
- Differentiating Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders From Attention-Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder and Reviewing Diagnostic Guidelines.Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences · 2026Review
- Developmental Neurotoxicity of Alcohol from Neuronal Basis to Behavioural Outcomes: A Comprehensive Review.Neurology international · 2026Review
- Disinhibited social engagement and reactive attachment behaviours in children assessed for Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder (FASD): Distinguishing effects of maltreatment from inhibitory control difficulties.Research on child and adolescent psychopathology · 2026Article
- Early biomarkers associated with prenatal alcohol exposure and neurodevelopmental outcomes.Frontiers in pharmacology · 2026Review
- Evaluating the role of strengths and protective factors for youth with FASD and criminal legal system involvement: a scoping review.Psychiatry, psychology, and law : an interdisciplinary journal of the Australian and New Zealand Association of Psychiatry, Psychology and Law · 2026Article
- Article
- Psychosocial, neurocognitive, and physical development in Eastern European adopted adolescents with and without fetal alcohol spectrum disorder.Alcohol, clinical & experimental research · 2025Article
- Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders.Current topics in behavioral neurosciences · 2025Review
- Environmental enrichment reverses prenatal ethanol exposure-induced attention-deficits in rats.Frontiers in psychiatry · 2025Article
- Anxiety and Depression and Sleep Problems Among Patients with Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders.Children (Basel, Switzerland) · 2024Article
- Late-term moderate prenatal alcohol exposure impairs tactile, but not spatial, discrimination in a T-maze continuous performance task in juvenile rats.Behavioural brain research · 2024Article
- First Description of a Large Clinical Series of Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders Children and Adolescents in Reunion Island, France.Children (Basel, Switzerland) · 2024Article
- Alcohol Toxicity in the Developing Cerebellum.Diagnostics (Basel, Switzerland) · 2024Article
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
3 authors at 1 institution in 1 country.
Funding
Abstract
backgroundAttention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD)-like symptoms are common in fetal alcohol spectrum disorders (FASD). FASD and ADHD groups both display executive function impairments; however, there is ongoing debate whether the pattern and magnitude of executive function deficits differs between these two types of disorders.
methodsAn electronic literature search was conducted (PubMed, PsychInfo; 1972-2013) to identify studies comparing the executive functioning of children with FASD with ADHD or control groups. FASD groups included those with and without dysmorphy (i.e., FAS, pFAS, ARND, and other FASD diagnoses). Effect sizes (Hedges' g, standardized mean difference) were calculated. Random effects meta-analytic models were performed using the metafor package for R.
resultsFifty-one studies met inclusion criteria (FASD N = 2,115; ADHD N = 453; controls N = 1,990). Children with FASD showed the strongest and most consistent deficits in planning, fluency, and set-shifting compared to controls (Hedges' g = -0.94, -0.78) and children with ADHD (Hedges' g = -0.72, -0.32). FASD was associated with moderate to large impairments in working memory, compared to controls (Hedges' g = -.84, -.58) and small impairments relative to groups with ADHD (Hedges' g = -.26). Smaller and less consistent deficits were found on measures of inhibition and vigilance relative to controls (Hedges' g = -0.52, -0.31); FASD and ADHD were not differentiated on these measures. Moderator analyses indicated executive dysfunction was associated with older age, dysmorphy, and larger group differences in IQ. Sex and diagnostic system were not consistently related to effect size.
conclusionsWhile FASD is associated with global executive impairments, executive function weaknesses are most consistent for measures of planning, fluency, and set-shifting. Neuropsychological measures assessing these executive function domains may improve differential diagnosis and treatment of FASD.
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Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.