Monozygotic twins with early infantile autism. A case report

A pair of monozygotic twins were born 3 weeks prematurely. They were concordant for early infantile autism (EIA) and developed at a similar rate until the age of 4 years, when one of them spontaneously improved. The other twin, who has suffered infrequent epileptic seizures since the age of 6 days, is still grossly autistic. The results of neurological examination and the electro-encephalograms of both are within normal limits. The role of genetic factors in the aetiology of autism is stressed, although these factors were not all important in the further development of these twins.