Medical Comorbidities in Autism Spectrum Disorder

Widespread reports of severe medical conditions being attributed, without investigation and sometimes without physical examination, to 'autism behaviours' have compelled the creation of this document in order
to present relevant information to healthcare providers, policy makers and the wider audience. A summary of current research, including the positions of leading governmental and professional bodies, is hoped and expected to help bridge the knowledge and training gap, and as a consequence, decrease the premature attribution of physical symptoms to 'autism behaviours'.

Up-to-date research is shared in this document, with the aim of providing support to health care and care providers in understanding the possible mechanisms, symptomatology, and consequences of common medical comorbidities in ASD. Please share this review with other parents and the professionals involved in the care of your child with autism!

Let us all work together for a brighter future to people with autism!

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CDC confirms children with Autism have many unmet medical needs

Recent study conducted by US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention confirms that children with autism face an increased risk for many common health conditions. This detailed assessment demonstrates that children with autism had much higher than expected rates of all of the medical conditions studied:

• frequent gastrointestinal problems
• asthma
• eczema or a skin allergy
• food allergies
• ear and respiratory infections
• severe headaches or migraines
• seizures

This much-needed research provides evidence that children with Autism and other developmental disabilities require increased health services and specialist services, both for their core functional deficits and for health problems beyond their core developmental disabilities.

Read full study here.
Read informative article by one of the authors here

Gut flora and gastrointestinal status in children with autism correlates with autism severity

A study by Arizona State University found strong correlation of gastrointestinal symptoms with autism severity. Their results indicate that children with more severe autism are likely to have more severe gastrointestinal symptoms and vice versa. The results of this research confirm once more the widespread abnormalities of gastrointestinal function in autism and the likelihood of GI problems in autism being a contributing factor to the severity of the disorder.   access full paper