Autism Risk Five Times Greater In Low Birthweight Infants
The children, some born as small as about a pound, were followed for 21 years making this study one of the most remarkable of its kind. The infants were born between September 1984 through July 1987 in Middlesex, Monmouth, and Ocean counties in New Jersey at birthweights from 500 to 2000 grams or a maximum of about 4.4 pounds.
“As survival of the smallest and most immature babies improves, impaired survivors represent an increasing public health challenge,” wrote lead author Jennifer Pinto-Martin. “Emerging studies suggest that low birthweight may be an autism risk factor.”
Links between low birthweight and a range of motor and cognitive problems have been well established for some time, but this is the first study that establishes that these children have increased autism risk.
“Cognitive problems in these children may mask underlying autism,” said Dr. Pinto-Martin. “If there is suspicion of autism or a positive screening test for autism spectrum disorders (ASD), parents should seek an evaluation for an ASD. Early intervention improves long-term outcome and can help these children both at school and at home.”
The researchers followed 862 children from birth to young adulthood finding that five percent of the children were diagnosed with autism, compared to one percent of the general population in what researchers called “the first study to have estimated the prevalence of ASD . . . using research validated diagnostic instruments.”
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