Exposure to antiepileptic drug in womb linked to autism risk
The authors base their findings on children born to 528 pregnant women between 2000 and 2004 in the North West of England. Just fewer than half the mums (243) had epilepsy, all but 34 of whom took antiepileptic drugs during their pregnancy. Fifty nine mums took carbamazepine; 59 took valproate; 36 took lamotrigine; 41 took a combination; and 15 took other drugs. The children's physical and intellectual development was assessed at the ages of 12 months, three and six years. Information was also obtained from their mothers about whether they had had to consult specialists about their child's behaviour, development, educational progress or health. Full data on all three assessments were available for 415 children. In all, 19 children had been diagnosed with a neurodevelopmental disorder by the time they were six years old, three of whom also had a physical abnormality. Of these, 12 had a form of autism, one of whom was also diagnosed with attention deficit hyperactivity ...