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Overall Weak Association Between Gastrointestinal Symptoms and Psychological, Autism, and Demographic Variables in
Eliana Rosenthal1, Daniel A Waschbusch1, Susan D Mayes1
1Penn State College of Medicine, Hershey, USA.
Insights
In autistic children, other physical symptoms like headaches strongly predict gastrointestinal (GI) issues, not autism severity or demographics. Further research into medical and physiological factors is needed to understand common GI problems in autism.
Area of Science:
- Neurodevelopmental Disorders
- Pediatric Gastroenterology
- Autism Spectrum Disorder Research
Background:
- Gastrointestinal (GI) problems are frequently reported in children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD).
- The underlying factors contributing to these GI issues in ASD remain incompletely understood.
- Existing research often focuses on psychological and demographic variables, with limited exploration of other potential predictors.
Purpose of the Study:
- To identify psychological, autism trait, somatic, and demographic variables associated with common GI symptoms in autistic children.
- To determine the relative contribution of these variables in predicting stomachaches, constipation, diarrhea, and bowel incontinence.
- To guide future research toward a more comprehensive understanding of GI issues in ASD.
Main Methods:
- Maternal ratings of GI symptoms and other behavioral/somatic variables were collected for 1,093 autistic children using the Pediatric Behavior Scale.
- Regression analyses were performed to assess the predictive power of various factors on GI symptoms.
- Correlations were examined to quantify the strength of associations between GI symptoms and independent variables.
Main Results:
- Somatic symptom scores (e.g., headaches, general sickness complaints) were the strongest predictors of stomachaches, constipation, and diarrhea.
- Autism severity, psychological symptoms, and demographics explained less than 2% of the variance in most GI symptoms.
- Decreasing age and IQ were associated with bowel incontinence; overall associations between GI problems and psychopathology/autism traits were weak.
Conclusions:
- Somatic symptoms, rather than psychological or demographic factors, are significantly associated with GI problems in autistic children.
- The weak link between GI issues and psychopathology/autism traits suggests that medical, physiological, and neurobiological factors warrant further investigation.
- Understanding the etiology of GI problems in ASD requires looking beyond behavioral and demographic correlates to explore underlying biological mechanisms.
Abstract:
Our study determined psychological, autism trait, somatic, and demographic variables associated with maternal ratings of stomachaches, constipation, diarrhea, and bowel incontinence in autistic children. Mothers of 1,093 autistic children rated their children on the Pediatric Behavior Scale. In regression analyses, the somatic symptom score (i.e., headaches, other aches/pains excluding stomachaches, complains of feeling sick) was the strongest predictor of stomachaches, constipation, and diarrhea. Scores on the other variables (autism severity, externalizing symptoms, internalizing symptoms, autism traits, sleep problems, demographics) each contributed less than 2% more to explained variance. Decreasing age and decreasing IQ were predictors of bowel incontinence. Only 1 of the 30 significant correlations between GI symptoms and the independent variables was large (stomachaches and other somatic symptoms), one was medium (stomachaches and sadness), and four were small to medium (stomachaches and anxiety and increasing age; bowel incontinence and decreasing age and decreasing IQ). The association between GI problems and psychopathology, autism symptoms, and demographics is weak. Findings suggest that researchers and clinicians need to look beyond these variables and consider medical, physiological, neurobiological, and genetic reasons why GI problems are so common in autism relative to children with other neurodevelopmental disorders and neurotypical children.Lay AbstractThis study explored the reasons why autistic children often experience stomachaches and other digestive issues. We found that other physical symptoms, like headaches, were the biggest predictors of stomach problems, while factors like autism severity, age, or IQ had less influence. The researchers suggest that there may be medical or physical reasons behind these issues, beyond what is currently understood.
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