The gut microbiota was reported to differ between children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and typically developing (TD) children, and dysbiosis of the gut microbiota in preterm infants is common. Here, we explored the characteristics of gut microbiota in children born preterm with ASD. We performed 16S rRNA gene sequencing using stool samples…

Although anxiety is commonly researched in autism, the focus has predominantly been on anxiety disorders and not upon general levels of anxiousness or trait anxiety. This review summarises research investigating trait anxiety in autism. Systematic searches yielded 1099 records, with 23 studies meeting inclusion criteria. Study participants were…

Increasing evidence highlights the role of disrupted circadian rhythms in the neural dysfunctions and sleep disturbances observed in autism spectrum disorder and attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder. However, the causality and directionality of these associations remain unclear. In this study, we employed a bidirectional two-sample Mendelian…

Purpose: Children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and food selectivity are at increased risk for nutritional deficiencies which could affect bone health. Methods: We report on four male patients with ASD and avoidant restrictive food intake disorder (ARFID) with significant bone conditions including rickets, vertebral compression fractures,…

Background: The Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children (WISC) employs a hierarchical model of general intelligence in which index scores separate out different clinically-relevant aspects of intelligence; the test is designed such that index scores are statistically independent from one another within the normative sample. Whether or not the…

Objective: Self-reported memory difficulties are common among older adults, but few studies have examined memory problems among autistic middle-aged and older people. The current study examines self-rated prospective (PM) and retrospective (RM) memory difficulties and their associations with age in middle-aged and older autistic and non-autistic…

Parent advocacy is important for the transition outcomes of autistic youth. However, it is unclear whether parent advocacy efforts support or stifle youths' self-determination. This study examined concurrent (n = 180) and longitudinal (n = 134) associations between parent advocacy and transition-aged autistic youths' self-determination (as…

Previous studies have reported that people with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) have higher levels of loneliness than neurotypical (NTP) people, most likely because of their difficulties in social communication with their predominantly NTP peers. However, direct investigations on the causal influence of friendship on their feelings of loneliness is…

The use of emotion recognition technologies in the workplace is expanding. These technologies claim to provide insights into internal emotional states based on external cues like facial expressions. Despite interconnections between autism and the development of emotion recognition technologies as reported in prior research, little attention has…

Anecdotal reports link a distinct, bilateral, parieto-temporally generated 4.5-Hz rhythm on an electroencephalogram to a methylenetetrahydrofolate reductase gene variant co-occurring in autism spectrum disorder, but the validation of its precision is needed. The electroencephalograms of children with autism spectrum disorder showing the distinct…

Children on the autism spectrum experience difficulties with social interactions, often resulting in lower quality of friendships. As such, children with autism often benefit from support with social skills, which are usually delivered in school settings. Social skills are not limited to school settings. Playdates are defined as prearranged…

Children with autism frequently present with complex mental health diagnoses and psychotropic medications are often a component of comprehensive biopsychosocial treatment plans for these conditions. The purpose of this study is to provide rates and patterns of psychotropic medication use, and predictors thereof, in children and youth with autism…

The aim of this study was to compare the rates of psychotropic medication use and psychotropic polypharmacy between autistic adults with and without intellectual disability (ID) and to examine factors associated with psychotropic medication use and psychotropic polypharmacy in autistic adults, stratified by the presence of ID. We conducted a…

Purpose: Increased local-to-global interference has been found in those with ASD, AD and OCD, and as such, may represent a transdiagnostic marker. As a first step to investigating this, we aimed to assess the overlap in traits of these disorders in a non-clinical sample, and whether local-global processing relates to the traits of the three…

Children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) are five times more likely to have feeding difficulties than neurotypical peers, although the majority of evidence describes feeding difficulty in children age 2 years and older. The purpose of this study is to systematically review the literature on feeding characteristics of children age 0-24 months…