ASD is a familial condition from what appears to be a disruption of early brain growth in developing fetuses that results in difficulties on how a child perceives and socializes with others while in addition experiencing limited and repetitive behaviors.
Usually, symptoms appear during the first year of life however some children appear normal and then regress between 18-24 months. There is no known single cause and as symptoms are complex and vary in intensity it is probably caused by both multiple genetic variations and environmental factors.
“Robust data about abnormalities in fetuses later developing into children diagnosed with ASD is lacking”.
A retrospective case-sibling-control study of 659 children (229 with ASD, 201 closest-in-age typically developing siblings (TDS) and 229 typically developing matched children from the general population (TDP) investigated the association between ultrasonographic fetal anomalies (USFA’s) and ASD.
On ultrasonography, the heads of fetuses who develop ASD are significantly narrower and have a relative wider ocular-distance compared to normal siblings/general population children. In addition, they have more prevalent multiple co-occurring UFA’s (urinary, heart, head/brain – more so in females).
Fetal ultrasonography may identify useful biomarkers in the prenatal diagnosis of ASD.
