The aim of this study was to evaluate the clinical features and frequency of autistic disorder or Asperger syndrome (AS; according to Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, 4th edition [DSM-IV] criteria) in children exposed to anticonvulsant medication in utero. During a 20-year study period, 626 children were born in Aberdeen to mothers taking antiepileptic drugs (AEDs). The st...

background: despite many efforts, the etiology of autism remains unknown. food allergy has been suggested as a pathogenic factor in autism spectrum disorder (asd). our aim in this study was to determine whether food allergy could be considered as a risk factor for autistic children. methods: thirty-nine autistic children were examined by the skin prick test (spt), and total serum ige was evalua...

Although elevation of blood and platelet serotonin has been documented in autism, genetic analyses of serotonin transporter gene have given conflicting results. Tryptophan 2,3 dioxygenase (TDO2) is the rate-limiting enzyme in the catabolism of tryptophan, the precursor of serotonin. A mutation that results in decreased activity of the TDO2 can decrease catabolism of tryptophan and increase the ...

This research extends previous research regarding the intellectual functioning of autistic individuals on standardized measures of intelligence (Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale-Revised and the Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children-Revised). In Study I 33 individuals with autism who closely fit the DSM-III criteria were studied. Clear evidence was found that differentiates these individuals...

To examine differences by sex in the timing of identification of individuals with autism spectrum disorders (ASD), survey data were collected in the Netherlands from 2,275 males and females with autistic disorder, Asperger's syndrome and PDD-NOS. Among participants < 18 years of age, females with Asperger's syndrome were identified later than males. Among participants ≥ 18 years of age, females...

Although people with autism spectrum disorders (ASD) often have severe problems with pragmatic aspects of language, little is known about their pragmatic reasoning. We carried out a behavioral study on high-functioning adults with autistic disorder (n = 11) and Asperger syndrome (n = 17) and matched controls (n = 28) to investigate whether they are capable of deriving scalar implicatures, which...

Autism is increasingly viewed as an expression of an unidentified neurological disorder. Because understanding of neurological dysfunction is basic to evaluation and treatment in occupational therapy, this article provides a comprehensive and critical review of the literature since 1985 concerning the neuropsychology of autistic disorder. The research is categorized into four basic types: (a) n...

DSM-IV states that Asperger Disorder may be distinguished from Autistic Disorder by a lack of a delay in early language development. The aim of this study was to establish whether the presence or absence of early language delay would predict autistic symptomatology in children diagnosed with a PDD/autism spectrum disorder. Forty-six language-delayed and 62 normal language onset individuals (M a...

Abnormalities in melatonin physiology may be involved or closely linked to the pathophysiology and behavioral expression of autistic disorder, given its role in neurodevelopment and reports of sleep-wake rhythm disturbances, decreased nocturnal melatonin production, and beneficial therapeutic effects of melatonin in individuals with autism. In addition, melatonin, as a pineal gland hormone prod...

IMPORTANCE Between 1978 and 2010, approximately 5 million infants were born after in vitro fertilization (IVF) treatments. Yet limited information on neurodevelopment after IVF exists, especially after the first year of life. OBJECTIVE To examine the association between use of any IVF and different IVF procedures and the risk of autistic disorder and mental retardation in the offspring. DES...