VANCOUVER—Canadian researchers have led a study suggesting infants be tested for autism spectrum disorder before symptoms appear if an older sibling has already been diagnosed with the neurobiological condition. They involve 288 infant siblings from Canada and the United States showing that by age three, 157 of the children were either diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder or developing atypically. Of the seven per cent of kids, 50 per cent were diagnosed with autism by age three and an additional 35 per cent had other developmental challenges. “Based on the findings of the study, we’re suggesting that the test be focused on younger siblings,” he said. The study also found that children did not necessarily inherit or share all the genetic variants with an older sibling with autism, which is consistent with previous research.

Source: thestar December 05, 2019 10:07 UTC