Narrowly versus broadly defined autism spectrum disorders: differences in pre- and perinatal risk factors.

Abstract

This study examined the differential contribution of pre- and perinatal risks in narrowly versus broadly defined autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and across core symptom domains, IQ and co-morbid problems. Children with a DSM-IV diagnosis of autistic disorder (AD) (n = 121) or pervasive developmental disorder not otherwise specified (PDD-NOS) (n = 75) were compared to a typical control sample (n = 311). Diagnoses were based on extensive assessments between 12 and 49 months of age (M = 33.3, SD = 6.4) and re-evaluated at 43-98 months (M = 68.1, SD = 10.7) in 70% of the cases. Compared with controls, cases with ASD were more likely to be firstborn and show a suboptimal condition after birth. Case mothers reported more infections and more stress during pregnancy. Although the ASD subgroups showed mostly overlapping risks, cases with PDD-NOS differed from those with AD by higher exposure to smoking during pregnancy (SDP) and by a negative association of smoking with IQ, regardless of confounders. SDP appears to contribute more to broadly defined (PDD-NOS) than to narrowly defined ASD (AD). Findings suggest differences in etiological contributors between ASD phenotypes.

• Authors: Janne C Visser, Nanda Rommelse, Lianne Vink, Margo Schrieken, Iris J Oosterling, Rutger J van der Gaag, Jan K Buitelaar
• Journal: Journal of autism and developmental disorders (J Autism Dev Disord) Vol. 43 Issue 7 Pg. 1505-16 (Jul 2013) ISSN: 1573-3432 [Electronic] United States
• PMID: 23076505 (Publication Type: Journal Article)

Chemical References

• Tobacco Smoke Pollution

Topics

• Child
• Child Development Disorders, Pervasive (diagnosis, epidemiology, etiology)
• Child, Preschool
• Comorbidity
• Female
• Humans
• Infant
• Infant, Newborn
• Intelligence
• Longitudinal Studies
• Male
• Netherlands
• Perinatal Care
• Pregnancy
• Prenatal Exposure Delayed Effects
• Prevalence
• Tobacco Smoke Pollution (adverse effects)