Several areas of the brain display relationships with facial dysmorphology in children with histories of heavy prenatal alcohol exposure. The dysmorphic facial features that are characteristic of FAS include (1) small palpebral fissures (the length of the opening of the eye), (2) smooth philtrum (the vertical groove perpendicular to the nose and lip) and (3) thin vermillion (upper lip) [64]. Shorter palpebral fissure length was related to smaller ventral diencephalon bilaterally, [65], a thinner corpus callosum, particularly in the anterior third [66], and increased cortical thickness in the right inferior frontal cortex [15]. A higher philtrum lipometer score, which indicated more severe dysmorphology, predicted reductions in the bilateral thalami and left palladium volumes [65]. Greater dysmorphism of both these facial features was also related to a lower full-scale IQ score [65]. Furthermore, there may be some differences in brain maturation among children with and without dysmorphic facial features, as children with more severe facial dysmorphology also displayed more blunted cortical volume change over time [37].
