Authors:
Whitehouse AJ; Mattes E; Maybery MT; Dissanayake C; Sawyer M; Jones RM; et al.
Authors notes:
J Neurodev Disord. 2012;4(1):25
Keywords:
Autism spectrum disorders, testosterone, pregnancy, cord blood
Abstract
ncreased prenatal testosterone exposure has been hypothesized as a mechanism underlying autism spectrum disorders (ASD).
However, no studies have prospectively measured prenatal testosterone exposure and ASD.
The current study sought to determine whether testosterone concentrations in umbilical cord blood are associated with a clinical diagnosis of ASD in a small number of children and with autistic-like traits in the general population.
These findings indicate that testosterone concentrations from umbilical cord blood are unrelated to autistic-like traits in the general population.
However, the findings do not exclude an association between testosterone exposure in early intrauterine life and ASD.