South Africa faces a high prevalence of Foetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder (FASD), underscoring the need to examine current treatments. Despite the evidence that a significant number of women drink alcohol during pregnancy, with prevalence rates between 3.7% and 22.6%, raising concerns about the negative effects on maternal and fetal health; limited research explores the effectiveness and cultural relevance of existing interventions. This Scoping Review (SR) aimed to identify and explore interventions for pregnant women with alcohol use disorder (AUD) in South Africa, while highlighting gaps in the research and the need for culturally appropriate approaches. The SR used the PICo (Population, Interest, Context) framework to develop research questions. A thorough search of online databases was conducted to find relevant empirical studies based on inclusion criteria. The search followed the Joanna Briggs Institute (JBI) guidelines and employed the PRISMA model to analyze the findings. A SR was conducted to address the question: What interventions are available for pregnant women with AUD in South Africa? The review included six mixedmethods articles and used chematic analysis. The findings illustrate that the public healthcare system offers prevention and management interventions targeting high-risk pregnant women with AUD. Prevention interventions significantly reduced alcohol consumption, with the use of public clinics ensuring accessibility and sustainability. Management interventions also showed a significant reduction in alcohol use, combining self-reports and biological measures for comprehensive assessment. The study highlights the importance of comprehensive approaches that include contextualand culturally relevant outcomes for alcohol exposed pregnancies, ensuring the effectiveness and reach of interventions as existing programs do not fully integrate contextual and culturally relevant factors that influence alcohol use during pregnancy.
Jacobs et al. (Mon,) studied this question.