Jove
Visualize
Contact Us
JoVE
x logofacebook logolinkedin logoyoutube logo
ABOUT JoVE
OverviewLeadershipBlogJoVE Help Center
AUTHORS
Publishing ProcessEditorial BoardScope & PoliciesPeer ReviewFAQSubmit
LIBRARIANS
TestimonialsSubscriptionsAccessResourcesLibrary Advisory BoardFAQ
RESEARCH
JoVE JournalMethods CollectionsJoVE Encyclopedia of ExperimentsArchive
EDUCATION
JoVE CoreJoVE BusinessJoVE Science EducationJoVE Lab ManualFaculty Resource CenterFaculty Site
Terms & Conditions of Use
Privacy Policy
Policies

Related Experiment Videos

Microcephaly and macrocephaly in autism.

E Fombonne1, B Rogé, J Claverie

  • 1Institute of Psychiatry, MRC Child Psychiatry Unit, London, United Kingdom.

Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders
|June 26, 1999
PubMed
Summary
This summary is machine-generated.

Related Concept Videos

You might also read

Related Articles

Articles linked to this work by shared authors, journal, and citation graph.

Sort by
Same author

Prevalence of Autism Spectrum Disorder in 7-9-Year-Old Children in Denmark, Finland, France and Iceland: A Population-Based Registries Approach Within the ASDEU Project.

Journal of autism and developmental disorders·2019
Same author

Service utilization in a sample of preschool children with autism spectrum disorder: A Canadian snapshot.

Paediatrics & child health·2016
Same author

Neurodevelopmental disorders in children born to mothers with systemic lupus erythematosus.

Lupus·2014
Same author

Language impairment and early social competence in preschoolers with autism spectrum disorders: a comparison of DSM-5 profiles.

Journal of autism and developmental disorders·2014
Same author

New interview and observation measures of the broader autism phenotype: impressions of interviewee measure.

Journal of autism and developmental disorders·2013
Same author

Rare mutations in N-methyl-D-aspartate glutamate receptors in autism spectrum disorders and schizophrenia.

Translational psychiatry·2012

This study found that autistic children have a higher incidence of both macrocephaly (enlarged head circumference) and microcephaly (small head circumference). These findings suggest potential underlying developmental differences in autism spectrum disorder.

Area of Science:

  • Neurodevelopmental Disorders
  • Pediatric Neurology
  • Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) Research

Background:

  • Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) is a complex neurodevelopmental condition with varied presentations.
  • Head circumference abnormalities, including macrocephaly and microcephaly, have been anecdotally observed in individuals with ASD.
  • Previous research has suggested a potential link between head size and autism, but comprehensive data is limited.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate the prevalence of macrocephaly and microcephaly in a cohort of autistic children.
  • To determine if head circumference abnormalities are associated with specific demographic or clinical factors in children with ASD.
  • To contribute to the understanding of potential etiological factors in autism spectrum disorder.

Main Methods:

Related Experiment Videos

  • A cross-sectional study examining data from 126 autistic children aged 2-16 years.
  • Head circumference measurements were compared against normative data to identify macrocephaly (>97th centile) and microcephaly (<3rd centile).
  • Statistical analyses were performed to assess associations between head circumference and factors such as age, gender, developmental level, epilepsy, and medical disorders.

Main Results:

  • Macrocephaly was observed in 16.7% of the autistic children, a significantly higher rate than expected.
  • Microcephaly was found in 15.1% of the sample, also a significantly elevated prevalence.
  • Macrocephaly showed a trend towards being more frequent in older subjects, while microcephaly was significantly associated with the presence of medical disorders.

Conclusions:

  • The findings support previous research indicating an increased prevalence of macrocephaly in autism, estimated at 20% when pooling data.
  • The elevated incidence of microcephaly, particularly in autistic children with medical disorders, may complicate the recognition of macrocephaly in some individuals.
  • These results highlight the importance of monitoring head circumference in children with autism spectrum disorder and considering potential associations with medical comorbidities.