Last update:

Autism spectrum disorders news

Autism spectrum disorders

Why some autistic people don't speak

Around a third of autistic people—children and adults alike—are unable to share what they want using speech.

Autism spectrum disorders

Survey shows only 36% of neurologists identify motor deficits as part of autism diagnosis

A new UCLA Health study highlights concerning gaps in how child neurologists understand and address motor difficulties in children with autism, despite research showing these movement problems affect the majority of autistic ...

Medications

Five things to know about folinic acid and autism

As the Food and Drug Administration moves to make folinic acid an official treatment for a neurological condition associated with autism, parents want to know how it might help children with autism spectrum disorder.

Health

RFK Jr pushes fringe claim linking autism to circumcision

US President Donald Trump and his Health Secretary, Robert F. Kennedy Jr., on Thursday promoted another fringe theory about autism—this time linking it to circumcision or to pain medication given for the procedure.

Medications

Q&A: Autism and Tylenol

The federal administration offered health guidance at a press conference this week, urging pregnant women to avoid using the over-the-counter painkiller acetaminophen, marketed in the U.S. as Tylenol, saying use of the medication ...

Psychology & Psychiatry

Identity distress fuels mental health issues in autism

A new study from the Department of Psychology at Durham University has found that identity distress (difficulty forming a cohesive identity) could be behind the higher rates of poor mental health experienced by autistic people.

Autism spectrum disorders

What research really says about autism

About two to three percent of all Americans—including adults and children—are autistic. With recent reports that autism rates are rising, potentially due to improved diagnosis, there's a lot of conflicting information ...

Autism spectrum disorders

New review highlights need for menopause support for autistic people

A new evidence review undertaken by Swansea University academics to better understand the menopause-related experiences and needs of autistic people, has revealed significant gaps in knowledge, support, and health care provision, ...

Autism spectrum disorders

What we do (and don't know) about autism and aging—new research

Autism is often thought of as a childhood condition, but this is far from true. Autism is a lifelong condition—and most autistic people are adults. Yet less than 1% of autism research has focused on older autistic people.

Autism spectrum disorders

No strong evidence for alternative autism treatments, study finds

The most comprehensive quantitative review of research into complementary and alternative treatments for autism has found no strong evidence to support their use, and that the safety of these treatments was rarely assessed.

Autism spectrum disorders

New study reveals gaps in autism diagnosis for girls

Researchers at the University of Minnesota have discovered the most compelling evidence to date that girls present with different symptoms of autism spectrum disorder (ASD) than boys—highlighting the need for new and innovative ...

Autism spectrum disorders

New data examines health spending among children with autism

Families with a child receiving treatment for autism spectrum disorder (ASD) incur almost 10 times more in health care costs than those of other children, including those diagnosed but not receiving any ASD treatment.

Neuroscience

Researchers reverse autism symptoms in mice with epilepsy drugs

Stanford Medicine scientists investigating the neurological underpinnings of autism spectrum disorder have found that hyperactivity in a specific brain region could drive behaviors commonly associated with the disorder.

Autism spectrum disorders

Gut microbiota linked to autism spectrum disorder progression in mice

Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) affects an estimated 1 in 31 children in the United States by 2025, and prevalence in East Asian countries, such as South Korea, Singapore, and Japan, may be even higher than those in the United ...

Autism spectrum disorders

Autism, ADHD or both? Research offers new insights for clinicians

In-depth research conducted by UC Davis Health shows that a significant number of autistic children also have attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). These findings underscore the need to thoroughly diagnose children ...

Autism spectrum disorders

Maternal obesity linked to autism-like behaviors in offspring

In a study conducted at the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa, researchers from the John A. Burns School of Medicine (JABSOM) have uncovered a mechanistic link between maternal obesity prior to pregnancy and autism-related ...

Psychology & Psychiatry

Alarming anxiety rates uncovered among autistic college students

As autism diagnoses continue to grow and remain a topic of nationwide debate, new research reveals that autistic individuals are facing mental health challenges at a major turning point in their lives—when they go to college.

Psychology & Psychiatry

New research highlights neurodivergent friendship patterns

New research from Abertay University has shed fresh light on how neurodivergent (ND) people form and experience friendships, highlighting a strong preference for building connections with others who share their neurotype.