When it comes to siblings, the research is clear: When one child is diagnosed with ASD, the next child to come along has about a 20% greater chance of developing ASD than a child with neurotypical older siblings. And when the first two children in a family receive that diagnosis, the chances go up to 32%.
For starters, a recent study, partly funded by Autism Speaks, found that in families with one or more children with ASD, the chances that a baby sibling will develop autism are much higher than previously thought. In fact, the odds were around one in five, or 20 percent.
Autism risk estimated at 3 to 5% for children whose parents have a sibling with autism.
Studies that include all siblings born before and after the child who has ASD have found the ASD recurrence risk to be 6-10% (Bolton et al., 1994; Chudley, Guitierrez, Jocelyn, & Chodirker.
Children who have an older sister with autism are more likely to also have the condition than are those who have an older brother on the spectrum. The risk is higher among younger brothers than younger sisters.
Although the exact cause of autism is still unknown, there is evidence to suggest that genetics play a significant role. Since autism is less prevalent in females, autism was always thought to be passed down from the mother. However, research suggests that autism genes are usually inherited from the father.
Siblings with autism share about 66 percent of their genetic material from their father and only about 30 percent from their mother. However, this was a surprising finding with many potential explanations including the complex interaction of parental DNA.
In the largest study of its kind, researchers have shown that the risk of autism increases for firstborn children and children of older parents. The risk of a firstborn with an autism spectrum disorder triples after a mother turns 35 and a father reaches 40.
Can autism skip a generation? Yes, it's possible for autism to skip a generation. This is because the genes that contribute to autism can be passed down from grandparents to grandchildren, even if the parents do not have the condition.
Maternal diabetes or obesity are linked to increased likelihood of having a child with autism or other developmental disability. Fever during pregnancy was associated with increased risk of autism for children.
Does Autism Run in Families? Studies have shown that autism is predominantly a genetic disorder, with 40-80% heritability. While researchers are still working to identify all of the genes associated with autism, they do know that some genetic mutations can increase your risk of developing autism.
Autism Prevalence
Boys are four times more likely to be diagnosed with autism than girls. Most children were still being diagnosed after age 4, though autism can be reliably diagnosed as early as age 2.
Numerous studies, including twin studies and family studies, have estimated the heritability of autism to be around 80 to 90%, indicating that genetic factors play a substantial role in its etiology.
The extreme male brain theory posits that it is an overdevelopment in the male traits of cognition that causes ASD patients to over-systematize, leading to a breakdown of verbal and social capacities. Some studies have found correlations between fetal testosterone levels and ASD.
But the question in our mind is whether is it detectable even during pregnancy. Recent studies have shown that autism can be detected during pregnancy as early as the second trimester.
Multiplex families tended to have more children, and thus more chances to have another child with autism. The study combined males and females when analyzing the data, even though ASD rates are higher in males and symptom severity may vary between the sexes.
There's no way to prevent autism spectrum disorder, but there are treatment options. Early diagnosis and intervention is most helpful and can improve behavior, skills and language development. However, intervention is helpful at any age.
Autism is not an illness
It means your brain works in a different way from other people. It's something you're born with. Signs of autism might be noticed when you're very young, or not until you're older. If you're autistic, you're autistic your whole life.
The earliest study we were able to identify that examined month of birth in association with autism was published in 1981. The investigator compared the birth patterns of 810 children with autism with those of 768 live birth controls and found that children with autism have an excess of March and August births.
For an individual, the risk of autism is increased 10 fold if a full sibling has the diagnosis and about 2 fold if a cousin has the diagnosis. These findings may inform counseling families with affected children.
The researchers found that mothers over 40 had a 51 percent higher risk of having a child with autism than mothers 25 to 29, and a 77 percent higher risk than mothers under 25. Autism—a developmental disorder characterized by impaired social interaction and communication—appears to be on the rise.
There is not just one cause of ASD. There are many different factors that have been identified that may make a child more likely to have ASD, including environmental, biologic, and genetic factors.
Conclusion. In conclusion, autistic individuals can absolutely have children of their own. While there may be some challenges that they face, with the right support and resources, autistic parents can be successful and loving parents.
Advances in diagnostic capabilities and greater understanding and awareness of autism spectrum disorder seem to be largely driving the increase, the Rutgers researchers said. But there's probably more to the story: Genetic factors, and perhaps some environmental ones, too, might also be contributing to the trend.