PI Highlight
Dr. Sarah Mattson
Dr. Sarah Mattson, Professor of Psychology, studies brain structure and function of children with fetal alcohol syndrome as well as other developmental disabilities.
Prenatal alcohol exposure is considered a leading known cause of mental retardation and, in its most severe form, results in the Fetal Alcohol Syndrome (FAS). Dr. Mattson's lab is investigating the significant neuropsychological and behavioral problems seen in children with FAS and fetal alcohol spectrum disorders (FASD). The lab also studies brain structure and function using MRI and fMRI. Research has highlighted specific areas of the brain that are affected by heavy prenatal alcohol exposure, specific neuropsychological consequences of this exposure, and the relationship between brain and behavioral changes.
Additional significant findings from Dr. Mattson’s lab indicate that children with heavy prenatal alcohol exposure who don’t display the requisite facial dysmorphology of FAS show the same pattern of neuropsychological deficits as children with FAS. Recently, Dr. Mattson’s research has included children with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder and other developmental disabilities or genetic disorders. The overarching aim of Dr. Mattson’s research is to improve diagnosis and identification of FAS and FASD, which will lead to improved treatment.
Graduate and undergraduate students are an active and integral part of Dr. Mattson’s research program. Along with the students, a team of research staff and volunteers allow this active research project to be successful. Dr. Mattson's work is funded by the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism. Her current awards total almost $2 million. She serves as Associate Director of SDSU's Center for Behavioral Teratology and Co-Director of SDSU's Alcohol Research Laboratory. She is involved in the Joint Doctoral Program for Clinical Psychology and the NIAAA Training Grant, which trains pre- and post-doctoral students involved in alcohol research using a scientist-practitioner model.
For further information, please contact Dr. Mattson at smattson@sunstroke.sdsu.edu or 594-7228.