Introduction: Current diagnostic assessment for fetal alcohol spectrum disorder (FASD) is time and resource intensive. And further complicated by the paucity of neuropsychological instruments designed and normed for young children. These factors have contributed to a widely held clinical view that young children should not be assessed for FASD, thereby missing an opportunity for tailored intervention during early critical developmental periods.

Method: Twelve children (aged 3-5 years) with confirmed prenatal exposure to alcohol were assessed using the Australian Guide to the Diagnosis of FASD requiring extensive and individualised assessment using psychometrically validated assessments across three to four days. This “gold standard” assessment process is compared to a diagnosis obtained on the basis of the Griffiths Scales of Child Development (Edition III), a single assessment instrument that takes three hours to administer.

Key Findings: The diagnostic profile indicates significant delay across multiple domains of functioning. The following diagnoses were obtained using gold standard assessment processes: 2 FASD with three sentinel facial features; 7 FASD with <3 sentinel facial features; 3 “At Risk” of FASD. Concordance with diagnosis, arrived at using Griffiths Scales, was >90%.

Discussion and Conclusions: These data suggest that the Griffiths Scales shows sensitivity and specificity compared to gold standard assessment. Further work is required to test this more robustly.

Implications for Practice: The utility of adopting an assessment process that has both sensitivity and specificity is essential given the scope of the problem (e.g. estimates 15-22% of high-risk populations such as children-in-care having FASD). The Griffiths holds promise as an effective assessment process that can be taken to scale and provide opportunities for timelier assessment and tailored intervention support.

Disclosure of Interest Statement: The work presented in this symposium has been supported by Drug and Alcohol Program: Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder (FASD) Diagnostic Services and Models of Care Grant Opportunity - H1617G038; Drug and Alcohol Program Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder (FASD) Diagnostic Services Grant Opportunity 4652; Gold Coast Health Collaborative Research Grant Scheme. No pharmaceutical grants were received to support this work.