Prevention of fetal alcohol syndrome.

The fetal alcohol syndrome (FAS) is the most avoidable handicap of newborns. It describes prenatal damages which result from the alcohol consumption of the mother. These can be: reduced body length and weight (pre- and postnatal), microcephaly, musculoskeletal, mental and statomotoric developmental retardations and impaired coordinative ability. There are preventive measures of which the efficiency is examined. Already, short counseling interviews, so-called short interventions, increase the abstinence of pregnant women.