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Executive Functioning Correlates With Communication Ability in Youth With Histories of Heavy Prenatal Alcohol Exposure

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  16 October 2018

Lauren R. Doyle ,
Eileen M. Moore ,
Claire D. Coles ,
Julie A. Kable ,
Elizabeth R. Sowell ,
Jeffrey R. Wozniak ,
Kenneth L. Jones ,
Edward P. Riley ,
Sarah N. Mattson Open the ORCID record for Sarah N. Mattson [Opens in a new window]  and
the CIFASD
Lauren R. Doyle
Affiliation:
Center for Behavioral Teratology and Department of Psychology, San Diego State University, San Diego, California
Eileen M. Moore
Affiliation:
Center for Behavioral Teratology and Department of Psychology, San Diego State University, San Diego, California
Claire D. Coles
Affiliation:
Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Emory University School of Medicine, Atlanta, Georgia Department of Pediatrics, Emory University School of Medicine, Atlanta, Georgia
Julie A. Kable
Affiliation:
Department of Pediatrics, Emory University School of Medicine, Atlanta, Georgia
Elizabeth R. Sowell
Affiliation:
Department of Pediatrics, Keck School of Medicine, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, California
Jeffrey R. Wozniak
Affiliation:
Department of Psychiatry, University of Minnesota, Saint Paul, Minnesota
Kenneth L. Jones
Affiliation:
Department of Pediatrics, University of California, San Diego School of Medicine
Edward P. Riley
Affiliation:
Center for Behavioral Teratology and Department of Psychology, San Diego State University, San Diego, California
Sarah N. Mattson*
Affiliation:
Center for Behavioral Teratology and Department of Psychology, San Diego State University, San Diego, California
the CIFASD
Affiliation:
Center for Behavioral Teratology and Department of Psychology, San Diego State University, San Diego, California Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Emory University School of Medicine, Atlanta, Georgia Department of Pediatrics, Emory University School of Medicine, Atlanta, Georgia Department of Pediatrics, Keck School of Medicine, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, California Department of Psychiatry, University of Minnesota, Saint Paul, Minnesota Department of Pediatrics, University of California, San Diego School of Medicine
*
Correspondence and reprint requests to: Sarah N. Mattson, 6330 Alvarado Court, Suite 100, San Diego, CA 92120. E-mail: sarah.mattson@sdsu.edu
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Abstract

Objectives: Caregivers of youth with heavy prenatal alcohol exposure report impaired communication, which can significantly impact quality of life. Using data collected as part of the Collaborative Initiative on Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders (CIFASD), we examined whether cognitive variables predict communication ability of youth with histories of heavy prenatal alcohol exposure. Methods: Subjects (ages 10–16 years) comprised two groups: adolescents with heavy prenatal alcohol exposure (AE) and non-exposed controls (CON). Selected measures of executive function (NEPSY, Delis-Kaplan Executive Function System), working memory (CANTAB), and language were tested in the child, while parents completed communication ratings (Vineland Adaptive Behavior Scales – Second Edition). Separate multiple regression analyses determined which cognitive domains predicted communication ability. A final, global model of communication comprised the three cognitive models. Results: Spatial Working Memory and Inhibition significantly contributed to communication ability across groups. Twenty Questions performance related to communication ability in the CON group only while Word Generation performance related to communication ability in the AE group only. Effects remained significant in the global model, with the exception of Spatial Working Memory. Conclusions: Both groups displayed a relation between communication and Spatial Working Memory and Inhibition. Stronger communication ability related to stronger verbal fluency in the AE group and Twenty Questions performance in the CON group. These findings suggest that alcohol-exposed adolescents may rely more heavily on learned verbal storage or fluency for daily communication while non-exposed adolescents may rely more heavily on abstract thinking and verbal efficiency. Interventions aimed at aspects of executive function may be most effective at improving communication ability of these individuals. (JINS, 2018, 24, 1026–1037)

Keywords

Fetal alcohol syndrome (FAS)Fetal alcohol spectrum disorders (FASD)Neurobehavioral disorder associated with prenatal alcohol exposure (ND-PAE)Prenatal alcohol exposureNeurobehavioral profileCommunication
Type
Regular Research
Information
Journal of the International Neuropsychological Society , Volume 24 , Issue 10 , November 2018 , pp. 1026 - 1037
Copyright
Copyright © The International Neuropsychological Society 2018 

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