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Association between paternal age at childbirth and autism spectrum disorder in offspring
Insights
Advanced paternal age at childbirth is linked to a higher risk of autism spectrum disorder (ASD) in children. Fathers aged 40 and above represent a high-risk group for ASD development in offspring.
Area of Science:
- Pediatric Neurology
- Developmental Pediatrics
- Reproductive Medicine
Background:
- Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is a complex neurodevelopmental condition with increasing prevalence.
- The role of parental age, particularly paternal age, as a potential environmental risk factor for ASD is an area of ongoing research.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the association between paternal age at childbirth and the risk of developing autism spectrum disorder (ASD) in offspring.
- To identify specific paternal age thresholds that may confer an elevated risk for ASD.
Main Methods:
- A cross-sectional study involving 71 children diagnosed with ASD and 284 typically developing controls matched for age, sex, and maternal age.
- Data collected via a self-designed questionnaire on social demographics, maternal pregnancy, and delivery factors.
- Logistic regression analysis employed to assess the association between paternal age and ASD risk.
Main Results:
- A significant association was found between higher paternal age at childbirth and an increased risk of ASD in offspring (OR=1.12, 95% CI: 1.02-1.23).
- Paternal age at childbirth of 40 years or older was significantly associated with a substantially increased risk of ASD (adjusted OR=8.50, 95% CI: 1.71-42.25).
Conclusions:
- High paternal age at childbirth is a significant risk factor for autism spectrum disorder in children.
- Paternal age of 40 years and above is identified as a high-risk age group for ASD development in offspring.
Objectives:
To study the association between paternal age at childbirth and the risk of autism spectrum disorder (ASD) in offspring.
Methods:
In this cross-sectional study, 71 children with ASD who were diagnosed in the Department of Child Healthcare in six hospitals in Guangzhou, Foshan, Beijing, Wuhan, Hangzhou, and Chongqing of China from August 2016 to March 2017 were enrolled as subjects, and 284 typically developing children matched for age, sex, and maternal age at childbirth with the ASD children served as controls. A self-design questionnaire was used to collect the data on social demography, maternal pregnancy, and delivery. The association between paternal age at childbirth and the development of ASD in offspring was evaluated by the logistic regression analysis.
Results:
After control for demographic factors and pregnancy- and delivery-related factors, the logistic regression analysis showed that a relatively high paternal age at childbirth was significantly associated with the increased risk of ASD in offspring (OR=1.12, 95%CI: 1.02-1.23, P<0.05). After grouping based on the paternal age, the logistic regression analysis showed that paternal age at childbirth of ≥40 years was significantly associated with the risk of ASD in offspring (before adjustment: OR=7.08, 95%CI: 1.77-28.32, P<0.05; after adjustment: OR=8.50, 95%CI: 1.71-42.25, P<0.05).
Conclusions:
High paternal age at childbirth is significantly associated with the increased risk of ASD in offspring, and paternal age at childbirth ≥40 years may be the high-risk age group for ASD in offspring.
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