WORLD JOURNAL OF ADVANCE
HEALTHCARE RESEARCH

Amar Verma, Naghma Mobin, Jagrita Malakar, Aparajita Dipali Minz

ABSTRACT

Background: The etiology of Autism Spectrum Disorder is diverse and still not fully understood. The association of various risk factors have been the prime focus of epidemiological study over the past years. Objective: Retrospective study for the identification of risk factors amongst patients associated with Autism Spectrum Disorders, reporting in the Department of Paediatrics, RIMS, Ranchi. Method: In this retrospective study, screening of 1010 toddlers was done aged between 16-30 months using the M-CHATR screening tool over a period of 13 months (May 2019- June 2020),out of which the medical records of 11 diagnosed cases of Autism Spectrum Disorder were reviewed. Inclusion criteria were children aged between 16-30 months, with no prior diagnosis of ASD or developmental delay. An informed consent form was duly signed by the parents of the children screened. In each such case, variables analysed were age, gender, parental age, family history, prematurity (GA <37weeks), low birth weight (<2.5kg) and perinatal asphyxia or need of resuscitation just after birth. Result: Among the 1010 toddlers that were screened, 11 were diagnosed with ASD. Mean maternal age was 31years and mean paternal age was 35years. Premature birth occurred in 8 (72.7%) cases, perinatal asphyxia in 6 (54.54%), and low birth weight in 7 (63.6%) cases. The prevalence of prematurity, low birth weight, and perinatal asphyxia among the children in our study was higher than the general prevalence of these conditions in the screening population of our study. Conclusion: Our study shows higher prevalence of prematurity, low birth weight, and perinatal asphyxia among children with ASD. Some limitations are the retrospective study design, and the small sample size. Large prospective studies are needed to clarify the possible association between perinatal complications and ASD.

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