Immune and autoimmune diseases in dyslexic children

One hundred and five dyslexic and 105 control children were compared for frequency of immune diseases, autoimmune diseases, and non-right-handedness in the light of the Geschwind-Behan (1982) "testosterone hypothesis". The results showed significantly more immune- and autoimmune-diseases int he dyslexic group. There were no differences between the groups in the frequency of non-right-handedness. There were no interactions with gender, although there were more non-right-handed boys than girls in the total sample. Mothers of children who were dyslexic experienced significantly more negative life-events during pregnancy, they also experienced the pregnancy as more difficult, and they had more spontaneous abortions. In conclusion, the results support some aspects of the "testosterone hypothesis", but they also point to a more complex pattern of interaction between the factors that still remain unanswered.