Premature babies at higher risk of autism: study

[Guest guest]

vaccinated at 12 hours of age with Hep B vax even

though may only be 26 - 33 weeks gestation

and then again at 2 months with a huge number

even though gestational age is really 1 day

Sheri

http://www.reutershealth.com/archive/2008/04/03/eline/links/20080403elin011.html

Premature babies at higher risk of autism: study

Last Updated: 2008-04-03 10:01:54 -0400 (Reuters Health)

By Stern

CHICAGO (Reuters) - One out of four toddlers born

prematurely showed early signs of autism in a

study, and the risk was greatest among those

children who were the smallest at birth, Canadian

researchers said on Wednesday.

Premature birth and low birth weight have been

recognized in earlier studies as risk factors for

a number of developmental problems, including autism and other illnesses.

But the study of 91 children, who were born

around between 7 and 14 weeks prematurely and

weighed 3.3 pounds (1.5 kg) or less at birth, was

the first to directly assess the risk of autism

in this population, the researchers wrote in the journal Pediatrics.

The initial screening test performed at around 21

months of age found suspected autism in 23 of the

91 children. The risk was greatest among those

children who were the smallest at birth, and

those born to mothers who suffered a prenatal

infection or bleeding, Limperopoulos of

McGill University said in a telephone interview.

" Early autistic behaviors seem to be an

under-recognized feature of very low birth-weight infants, " she wrote.

She added that the screening was preliminary, and

definitive diagnosis would come in a follow-up study.

Autism or related disorders such as Asperger's

syndrome strike one out of 150 U.S. children, the

U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention

has estimated. The condition can have relatively

mild symptoms or can severely disable a child by

interfering with speech and behavior.

Higher rates of autism in recent years have been

attributed to various causes, including improved

diagnoses. Other studies have found genetic and

other links to the condition, which many experts

suspect may have several different causes.

Some activists believe childhood vaccines can

trigger autism, though medical experts say they can find no such link.

IMPROVED SURVIVAL RATES

Medical advances have greatly improved survival

rates of premature and low birth-weight babies.

But Limperopoulos and another expert said the

study's findings did not mean the greater number

of surviving premature babies was causing the increase in autism rates.

" I think this is not the answer to the increased

rate of autism in our country, (though) it may

well represent a small part of that increase.

This is a more important finding for the world of

prematurity than for the world of autism, " said

Dr. Alan Fleischman, medical director of the

March of Dimes, a U.S. advocacy group that works

to prevent premature births and birth defects.

The report said the findings do " support

comprehensive screening for social and behavioral

dysfunction in ex-preterm infants. "

In a separate study in the journal, researchers

at the University of Rochester in New York found

families with an autistic child often faced financial hardship.

Besides having to pay more out-of-pocket for

medical care and education, parents of the 131

children in the study with autism spectrum

disorders lost an average of $6,200 from their

expected annual income, or 14 percent.

Some parents opted for part-time work, because of

limited community resources to help care for

their children, the study concluded.

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Sheri Nakken, former R.N., MA, Hahnemannian Homeopath

Vaccination Information & Choice Network, Nevada City CA & Wales UK

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