Children with perinatal stroke are at increased risk for autism spectrum disorder: Prevalence and co-occurring conditions within a clinically followed sample.
Publication/Presentation Date
7-1-2022
Abstract
OBJECTIVE: Children with perinatal stroke are at increased risk for developmental language disorders, learning difficulties, and other mental health conditions. However to date, autism (ASD) prevalence in this group has not been reported. Given that early identification of ASD is essential to promoting optimal outcomes, our goal was to establish prevalence of ASD in children with perinatal stroke.
METHOD: A prospectively enrolled, single-center stroke registry maintained at our institution since 2005 was queried for all potentially eligible patients with a history of perinatal stroke. Information regarding stroke features, ASD diagnosis/concern, intellectual disability/global developmental delay, cerebral palsy/hemiparesis, epilepsy, and language disorder were collected via retrospective chart review from electronic health records.
RESULTS: 311 children were identified, of which 201 complete records were analyzed. Twenty-three cases were formally diagnosed with ASD (11.4%). First concerns were noted in toddlerhood (Mage = 2.66 years), yet the average age of diagnosis was 6.26 years. Children with ASD were more likely to have earlier diagnoses of intellectual disability/global developmental delay or a mixed receptive-expressive language disorder (
DISCUSSION: Children with perinatal stroke have an increased prevalence of ASD (11.4%) than in the general population. ASD concerns arise at a similar age as the general population, yet ASD is diagnosed almost two years later than the general population and 3.60 years after first concerns present. Co-occurring neurological conditions are common. Clinicians must be aware of increased prevalence and implement screening as part of routine care for all pediatric patients with perinatal stroke.
Volume
36
Issue
5
First Page
981
Last Page
992
ISSN
1744-4144
Published In/Presented At
Hamner, T., Shih, E., Ichord, R., & Krivitzky, L. (2022). Children with perinatal stroke are at increased risk for autism spectrum disorder: Prevalence and co-occurring conditions within a clinically followed sample. The Clinical neuropsychologist, 36(5), 981–992. https://doi.org/10.1080/13854046.2021.1955150
Disciplines
Medicine and Health Sciences | Pediatrics
PubMedID
34308766
Department(s)
Department of Pediatrics
Document Type
Article