Gendered play behaviours in autistic and non-autistic children:a population-based cohort study

Lay abstractNon-autistic children tend to show gendered patterns of play behaviours - boys are more likely to play with 'masculine' toys, and girls are more likely to play with 'feminine' toys. However, little is known about whether autistic children follow these patterns as well. We looked at the masculinity and femininity of autistic and non-autistic children's play behaviours at multiple time points. Parents reported their children's play behaviours at ages 30, 42 and 57 months, and children reported their own play behaviours at 8 years old. We found no difference between autistic and non-autistic girls, who both showed more feminine play behaviours as they got older. Autistic boys' play behaviours were reported as less masculine than non-autistic boys at 42 and 57 months, and at 8 years old. We also found that non-autistic boys' play tended to become more masculine as they got older, but this was not the case for autistic boys. Our findings suggest that differences in autistic and non-autistic boys' play behaviours may develop at around 42 months old

Migration and risk of intellectual disability with and without autism:A population-based cohort study

Objective To investigate whether parental migration, parental region of origin, timing of child's birth in relation to maternal migration and parental reason for migration are associated with intellectual disability (ID) with and without autism. Methods We used a register-based cohort of all individuals aged 0–17 years in Stockholm County during 2001–2011. General estimating equation logistic model and additionally sibling comparison were used to calculate odds ratios (ORs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs). The models were adjusted for child's sex and birth year and parental age at child's birth, and additionally for migrant-specific variables in the analyses including only children with migrant parent(s). Results Within the eligible sample of 670,098 individuals, 3781 (0.6%) had ID with autism, and 5076 (0.8%) had ID without autism. Compared with children with Swedish-born parents, children with both parents born abroad had an increased risk of ID with autism (OR = 1.6, CI 1.5–1.8) and ID without autism (OR = 1.9, CI 1.7–2.0). Among these children with both parents born abroad, it was protective of ID with autism when the child's birth occurred before and later than four years after maternal migration, which was replicated in the sibling comparison. The associations with both conditions were more pronounced with parental origin in regions comprising low- and middle-income countries and with reasons other than work or study. Conclusions Parental migration is associated with ID regardless of co-occurrence of autism. Our results indicate an association between environmental factors during pregnancy related to migration and offspring ID with autism, although further confirmative studies are needed

Father absence and trajectories of offspring mental health across adolescence and young adulthood: findings from a UK-birth cohort

Background: High prevalence of parental separation and resulting biological father absence raises important questions regarding its impact on offspring mental health across the life course. We specifically examined whether these relationships vary by sex and the timing of exposure to father absence (early or middle childhood). Methods: This study is based on up to 8409 children from the Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents and Children (ALSPAC). Participants provided self-reports of depression (Clinical Interview Schedule-Revised) at age 24 years and depressive symptoms (Short Mood and Feelings Questionnaire) between the ages of 10 and 24 years. Biological father absence in childhood was assessed through maternal questionnaires at regular intervals from birth to 10 years. We estimated the association between biological father absence and trajectories of depressive symptoms using multilevel growth-curve modelling. Results: Early but not middle childhood father absence was strongly associated with increased odds of offspring depression and greater depressive symptoms at age 24 years. Early childhood father absence was associated with higher trajectories of depressive symptoms during adolescence and early adulthood compared with father presence. Differences in the level of depressive symptoms between middle childhood father absent and father present groups narrowed into adulthood. Limitations: This study could be biased by attrition and residual confounding. Conclusions: We found evidence that father absence in childhood is persistently associated with offspring depression in adolescence and early adulthood. This relationship varies by sex and timing of father's departure, with early childhood father absence emerging as the strongest risk factor for adverse offspring mental health trajectories Further research is needed to identify mechanisms that could inform preventative interventions to reduce the risk of depression in children who experience father absence

Intelligence in offspring born to women exposed to intimate partner violence: a population-based cohort study

Background: Intimate partner violence (IPV) is a risk factor for developmental problems in offspring. Despite a high prevalence of IPV in the UK and elsewhere, the longer-term outcomes of offspring born to exposed mothers remain under-researched. Methods: Population-based cohort study. We assessed IPV prevalence by type and timing for 3,153 mother-child pairs with complete data within our study population and examined associations between IPV and offspring IQ. We used multiple-imputation to evaluate bias due to our exclusion of observations with missing covariate data. Results: Nearly one in five mothers reported IPV during the study period, with 17.6% reporting emotional violence and 6.8% reporting physical violence. Taking into account potential confounders, the IQ scores of children born to mothers exposed to physical violence remained lower than those of maternally unexposed children (full-scale IQ = −2.8 points [95%CI −4.9 to −0.7], verbal IQ = −2.2 [95%CI −4.4 to −0.1], performance IQ = −2.7 [95%CI  −5.0 to −0.5]) and odds of below-average intelligence (IQ<90) remained increased for full-scale (OR 1.48 [95%CI 1.03 to 2.14] and performance IQ (OR 1.48 [95%CI 1.08 to 2.04]) but not verbal IQ (OR 1.06 [95%CI 0.69 to 1.64]). Most physical violence occurred postnatally, and relative odds were most substantial when mothers were exposed to violence across pre-/perinatal and postnatal study periods (OR performance IQ<90 = 2.97 [95%CI 1.30 to 6.82]). Conclusions: Maternal exposure to physical IPV is associated with lower offspring IQ at age 8. Associations persisted after adjusting for potential confounders and were driven by violence occurring postnatally

Father absence and trajectories of offspring mental health across adolescence and young adulthood:Findings from a UK-birth cohort

Background High prevalence of parental separation and resulting biological father absence raises important questions regarding its impact on offspring mental health across the life course. We specifically examined whether these relationships vary by sex and the timing of exposure to father absence (early or middle childhood). Methods This study is based on up to 8409 children from the Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents and Children (ALSPAC). Participants provided self-reports of depression (Clinical Interview Schedule-Revised) at age 24 years and depressive symptoms (Short Mood and Feelings Questionnaire) between the ages of 10 and 24 years. Biological father absence in childhood was assessed through maternal questionnaires at regular intervals from birth to 10 years. We estimated the association between biological father absence and trajectories of depressive symptoms using multilevel growth-curve modelling. Results Early but not middle childhood father absence was strongly associated with increased odds of offspring depression and greater depressive symptoms at age 24 years. Early childhood father absence was associated with higher trajectories of depressive symptoms during adolescence and early adulthood compared with father presence. Differences in the level of depressive symptoms between middle childhood father absent and father present groups narrowed into adulthood. Limitations This study could be biased by attrition and residual confounding. Conclusions We found evidence that father absence in childhood is persistently associated with offspring depression in adolescence and early adulthood. This relationship varies by sex and timing of father's departure, with early childhood father absence emerging as the strongest risk factor for adverse offspring mental health trajectories Further research is needed to identify mechanisms that could inform preventative interventions to reduce the risk of depression in children who experience father absence

Association of autistic traits with depression from childhood to age 18 years

Importance Population-based studies following trajectories of depression in autism spectrum disorders (ASD) from childhood into early adulthood are rare. The role of genetic confounding and of potential environmental intermediaries, such as bullying, in any associations is unclear. Objectives To compare trajectories of depressive symptoms from ages 10 to 18 years for children with or without ASD and autistic traits, to assess associations between ASD and autistic traits and an International Statistical Classification of Diseases, 10th Revision (ICD-10) depression diagnosis at age 18 years, and to explore the importance of genetic confounding and bullying. Design, Setting, and Participants Longitudinal study of participants in the Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents and Children birth cohort in Bristol, United Kingdom, followed up through age 18 years. Data analysis was conducted from January to November 2017. Main Outcomes and Measures Depressive symptoms were assessed using the Short Mood and Feelings Questionnaire (SMFQ) at 6 time points between ages 10 and 18 years. An ICD-10 depression diagnosis at 18 years was established using the Clinical Interview Schedule–Revised. Exposures were ASD diagnosis and 4 dichotomized autistic traits (social communication, coherence, repetitive behavior, and sociability). An autism polygenic risk score was derived using the Psychiatric Genomics Consortium autism discovery genome-wide association study summary data. Bullying was assessed at ages 8, 10, and 13 years. Results The maximum sample with complete data was 6091 for the trajectory analysis (48.8% male) and 3168 for analysis of depression diagnosis at age 18 years (44.4% male). Children with ASD and autistic traits had higher average SMFQ depressive symptom scores than the general population at age 10 years (eg, for social communication 5.55 [95% CI, 5.16-5.95] vs 3.73 [95% CI, 3.61-3.85], for ASD 7.31 [95% CI, 6.22-8.40] vs 3.94 [95% CI, 3.83-4.05], remaining elevated in an upward trajectory until age 18 years (eg, for social communication 7.65 [95% CI, 6.92-8.37] vs 6.50 [95% CI, 6.29-6.71], for ASD 7.66 [95% CI, 5.96-9.35] vs 6.62 [95% CI, 6.43-6.81]). Social communication impairments were associated with depression at age 18 years (adjusted relative risk, 1.68; 95% CI, 1.05-2.70), and bullying explained a substantial proportion of this risk. There was no evidence of confounding by the autism polygenic risk score. Analysis in larger samples using multiple imputation led to similar but more precise results. Conclusions and Relevance Children with ASD and ASD traits have higher depressive symptom scores than the general population by age 10 years, which persist to age 18 years, particularly in the context of bullying. Social communication impairments are an important autistic trait in relation to depression. Bullying, as an environmental intermediary, could be a target for interventions

Anxiety Disorders in Adults with Autism Spectrum Disorder:A Population-Based Study

Anxiety is common in children with ASD; however, the burden of specific anxiety disorders for adults with ASD is under-researched. Using the Stockholm Youth Cohort, we compared anxiety disorder diagnoses among autistic adults (n = 4049), with or without intellectual disability, and population controls (n = 217,645). We conducted additional sibling analyses. Anxiety disorders were diagnosed in 20.1% of adults with ASD compared with 8.7% of controls (RR = 2.62 [95% CI 2.47-2.79]), with greatest risk for autistic people without intellectual disability. Rates of almost all individual anxiety disorders were raised, notably obsessive-compulsive disorder and phobic anxiety disorders. Anxiety disorders were more common in full siblings and half-siblings of people with ASD. The implications of this are explored

Prevalence of Autism Spectrum Disorders with and without Intellectual Disability by Gestational Age at Birth in the Stockholm Youth Cohort:a Register Linkage Study

BackgroundPreterm birth has been linked to increased risk of autism spectrum disorders (ASD), but how this risk changes with gestational age at birth has not been well characterised, especially with regard to co-occurring intellectual disability (ID).MethodsRegister-based cohort study of singleton births in 1984-2007 in Stockholm County, Sweden (N total: 480 728; n ASD: 10 025). We assessed overall and sex-specific, gestational week-specific prevalence estimates and risk ratios of ASD with and without ID.ResultsPreterm and postterm births were associated with elevated risk of ASD, and the relationship between gestational age at birth and ASD with and without ID differed in males and females. Risk of ASD without ID was higher in preterm births among both sexes and decreased continuously with increasing length of gestation. Risk of ASD with ID was higher in both preterm and postterm births among both sexes, with postterm birth in females being more highly associated with ASD with ID than that in males.ConclusionsThe relationship between gestational age at birth and ASD differs by the presence/absence of co-occurring ID and fetal sex. Both preterm and postterm birth are associated with increased risk of ASD. Risk of ASD is not constant within conventionally defined gestational age at birth periods. Further research on mechanism underlying these associations is needed

Experience of an NIHR Clinical Lectureship (medical/dental) and the determining factors for a clinical academic career post lectureship:a mixed-method evaluation

Objectives: The objective of this study is to investigate early-to-late postdoctoral clinical academic progression and the experiences of NIHR Clinical Lectureship (CL) fellows, considering enablers and barriers to success, and identifying the factors associated with immediate progression to a clinical academic role following completion of the award. Setting: Datasets of CL awardees across the UK. Participants: For semistructured interviews, n=40 CL awardees that had finished their award within the previous 5 years. For quantitative analysis, n=1226 completed or currently active CL awardees. Outcome measures: The responses from the semistructured interviews to the defined questions on experiences during the award, postaward progression, and enablers and barriers to academic progression. Other primary outcome measures were quantitative data on first destinations postaward, demographic data, and whether an awardee had previously held an NIHR Academic Clinical Fellowship (ACF) or was a recipient of the Academy of Medical Sciences (AMS) Starter Grant. Results: CL awardees identified numerous benefits to the award, with the majority achieving their aims. Most awardees progressed to a clinical academic role; however, some returned to a clinical only position, citing concerns around the time pressure associated with balancing clinical and academic responsibilities, and the competition to attain further postdoctoral awards. The region of the award partnership, year of award end and success in applying for an AMS Starter Grant were associated with progression to a clinical academic role. Gender, holding an ACF and having a craft or non-craft specialty had no independent statistical association with clinical academic progression. Conclusions: The CL is a valued element of the Integrated Academic Pathway. By addressing issues around later postdoctoral progression opportunities, responding to challenges experienced by CLs, and by understanding the factors identified in this study associated with clinical academic progression, it should be possible to increase the proportion of CLs that become fully independent clinical academic research leaders. Participants: 1226 NIHR CLs active or completed on the award between 2006 and 2020

Sex bias in autism spectrum disorder in neurofibromatosis type 1

BACKGROUND: Despite extensive literature, little is known about the mechanisms underlying sex bias in autism spectrum disorder (ASD). This study investigates the sex differences in ASD associated with neurofibromatosis type 1, a single-gene model of syndromic autism. METHODS: We analysed data from n = 194 children aged 4–16 years with neurofibromatosis type 1. Sex differences were evaluated across the Autism Diagnostic Interview-Revised (ADI-R), Autism Diagnostic Observation Schedule (ADOS), verbal IQ, Social Responsiveness Scale (SRS) and Conners questionnaires. RESULTS: There was 2.68:1 male:female ratio in children meeting ASD criteria on the deep phenotyping measures. On symptom profile, males with neurofibromatosis type 1 (NF1) + ASD were more impaired on reciprocal social interaction and communication domains of the ADI-R but we found no differences on the restricted, repetitive behaviours (RRBs) domain of the ADI-R and no differences on the social on the ADOS. NF1 ASD males and females were comparable on verbal IQ, and the inattention/hyperactivity domains of the Conners questionnaire. CONCLUSIONS: There is a significant male bias in the prevalence of ASD in NF1. The phenotypic profile of NF1 + ASD cases includes greater social communication impairment in males. We discuss the implications of our findings and the rationale for using NF1 as a model for investigating sex bias in idiopathic ASD