No association between early gastrointestinal problems and autistic-like traits in the general population
Posted Mar 25 2011 7:37pm
Gastrointesintal problems are a common topic of discussion and debate in the online autism communities. Much of the discussion involves causation: do GI problems cause autism? A recent study looks at a tangent of this argument. Considering the general population, do GI problems early in life predict autistic traits later in life? The methodology isn’t the strongest: they use parent reports of GI complaints and the self-report questionaire Autism Quotient. They also asked about whether the individuals were immunized with the MMR vaccine.
The results:
There was no statistically significant difference in AQ scores between those who had (n=133) and those who had not (n=671) experienced early gastrointestinal symptoms. (2) analyses revealed that the children with early gastrointestinal problems were no more likely to be represented in the upper quintile of scores on any of the AQ scales. The measles, mumps, and rubella vaccination was unrelated to gastrointestinal symptoms or AQ scores.
Aim
The aim of this study was to determine whether gastrointestinal problems in early childhood relate to autistic-like traits in a general population sample.
Method
The parents of 804 children (442 females; 362 males) reported at 1-, 2-, 3-, and 5-year follow-ups whether their child had been taken to a hospital, general practitioner, or health clinic for any of five gastrointestinal symptoms: (1) constipation; (2) diarrhoea; (3) abdominal bloating, discomfort, or irritability; (4) gastro-oesophageal reflux or vomiting; and (5) feeding issues or food selectivity. Parents also reported whether their child had received the measles, mumps, and rubella vaccination. Autistic-like traits were measured when the children had reached early adulthood (mean age 19y 7mo; SD 0.63y) using a self-report questionnaire, the Autism Spectrum Quotient (AQ).
Results
There was no statistically significant difference in AQ scores between those who had (n=133) and those who had not (n=671) experienced early gastrointestinal symptoms. (2) analyses revealed that the children with early gastrointestinal problems were no more likely to be represented in the upper quintile of scores on any of the AQ scales. The measles, mumps, and rubella vaccination was unrelated to gastrointestinal symptoms or AQ scores.
Interpretation
Parent-reported gastrointestinal problems in early childhood are unrelated to self-reported autistic-like traits in the general population.
Penelope:
Thanks LBRB. You make every thing so simple to understand. Just like the vaccines are 100% safe all the time research you like to share. Keep up the mind-provoking, in depth work.
RAJ:
A new study that scored the presence of 'autistic-like' traits in twin cohorts representing nearly 30,000 children and adults found that 'autistic-likes' traits are not specific to autism risk. 'Autistic-like' traits are associated with risk for a broad spectrum of mental health problems including ADHD, anxiety, conduct problems, depression,substance abuse as well as autism.
This findings has to question the meaningfullness of such intruments as Baron-Cohen's ASQ tests which is not a test for 'autism' but rather a test for common normal human characteristic personality traits that may represent a slightly increased risk for a broad spectrum of mental health issues. The relevance to autism, a debilitating neurological disorder, in this study can be questioned. A study that looked at children with an unambigous diagnosis of autism (DSM-IV criteria) would shed more light than this study which which looked at AS scores in the general population.
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/21426604
RAJ:
Pang and Croker looked at children with GIT symptoms severe enough to be referred to a Pediatric Constipation Surgical Unit and found that 8.5% of children whose GIT symptoms were severe enough to be referred to a surgical unit were diagnosed with autism, far greater than population norms.
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/20697898
Gastrointesintal problems are a common topic of discussion and debate in the online autism communities. Much of the discussion involves causation: do GI problems cause autism? A recent study looks at a tangent of this argument. Considering the general population, do GI problems early in life predict autistic traits later in life? The methodology isn’t the strongest: they use parent reports of GI complaints and the self-report questionaire Autism Quotient. They also asked about whether the individuals were immunized with the MMR vaccine.
The results:
The abstract is quoted below:
No association between early gastrointestinal problems and autistic-like traits in the general population
Thanks LBRB. You make every thing so simple to understand. Just like the vaccines are 100% safe all the time research you like to share. Keep up the mind-provoking, in depth work.
A new study that scored the presence of 'autistic-like' traits in twin cohorts representing nearly 30,000 children and adults found that 'autistic-likes' traits are not specific to autism risk. 'Autistic-like' traits are associated with risk for a broad spectrum of mental health problems including ADHD, anxiety, conduct problems, depression,substance abuse as well as autism. This findings has to question the meaningfullness of such intruments as Baron-Cohen's ASQ tests which is not a test for 'autism' but rather a test for common normal human characteristic personality traits that may represent a slightly increased risk for a broad spectrum of mental health issues. The relevance to autism, a debilitating neurological disorder, in this study can be questioned. A study that looked at children with an unambigous diagnosis of autism (DSM-IV criteria) would shed more light than this study which which looked at AS scores in the general population. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/21426604
Pang and Croker looked at children with GIT symptoms severe enough to be referred to a Pediatric Constipation Surgical Unit and found that 8.5% of children whose GIT symptoms were severe enough to be referred to a surgical unit were diagnosed with autism, far greater than population norms. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/20697898
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