Alcohol and pregnancy: analysis of strategies to decrease alcohol consumption among reproductiveage women in Uruguay

Abstract

In Uruguay one out of three fetuses are exposed to alcohol during gestation. Due to the fact that this is the main cause of non-inheritable mental retardation and that it is easily preventable, it is important to detect in early stages of pregnancy all those cases of exposure to this substance. The main purpose of this study was to analyse effectiveness and applicability of different methods to detect prenatal exposure to alcoholic drinks and of existent interventions to decrease the prevalence of alcohol exposed pregnancies, in order to generate some recommendations which could be used by every health professional in Uruguay. After an exhaustive analysis of bibliography, the strategy that is recommended in order to identify fetal alcohol exposure is the standardized questionnaire AUDIT-C, which has a sensibility of 95 % and a specificity of 85 %, and which should be applied during the first pregnancy control. Afterwards, the application of a brief intervention strategy with a motivational and collaborative approach, has demonstrated to be cost-effective to decrease the rates of alcohol exposed pregnancies. The approach used in these interventions aims to educate patients in order to allow themselves to identify and understand the importance of changing their habits.