The majority of COA studies ascertained based on having either parent with alcohol dependence (59%). Most of the remaining studies specifically included participants based on the father being AD (29%). Maternal alcohol consumption during pregnancy was primarily confirmed via clinical evaluations of the offspring (47%) or maternal interviews and questionnaires (40%) and the mother was rarely evaluated for alcohol dependence. PAE studies were more likely to assess maternal smoking or drug use during pregnancy (53%) compared to COA studies (13%; X2(1)=9.3, p=0.0023). Diagnosis of the externalizing disorder was made primarily using DSM-IV criteria in PAE studies (94%), whereas only 47% of COA studies used DSM-IV (X2(1)=9.9, p=0.0016). This is likely due to dates of the studies used in the meta-analysis: the earliest PAE study was from 2003, while 14 (44%) of the COA studies ranged from 1983 – 2002, and therefore primarily used DSM-III-R criteria (52%).
