In the US, boys are diagnosed with autism much more often than girls. However, a new study found no clinical differences in autistic traits between the sexes in infants when they are first diagnosed with the disorder. This may indicate an underestimation of the disease in girls due to differences in the manifestation of symptoms. This is reported by UNN with reference to MedicalXpress.
Details
During research, published in the journal Nature Human Behavior, it was found that in the US, autism is detected in boys four times more often than in girls. This may be due to the fact that girls show symptoms of autism less noticeably or mask them, which complicates timely diagnosis.
Researchers from the University of California San Diego School of Medicine examined more than 2,500 male and female infants between the ages of 12 and 48 months between 2002 and 2022. Of these babies, 1,500 showed signs of autism, 600 showed typical development, and 475 showed developmental delay.
The assessment included 19 different indicators of language development, social and motor skills, manifestations of the main features of autism, such as repetitive behavior, cognitive skills and other developmental characteristics.
The study also examined social attention using gaze tracking technology.
Researchers found that boys are more likely to exhibit typical autism symptoms such as repetitive behaviors and restricted interests, while girls may be better able to adapt socially and hide symptoms. This leads to girls often being diagnosed at a later age or not being diagnosed at all.
Reference
Autism is a neurological developmental disorder that affects social interaction, communication, and behavior. Symptoms can range from mild to severe and often appear in early childhood.