Autism Risk Rises With Age Of Father
From washingtonpost.com :
Children born to fathers of advancing age are at significantly higher risk of developing autism compared with children born to younger fathers, according a comprehensive study published yesterday that offers surprising new insight into one of the most feared disorders of the brain.
The finding comes at a time of great controversy over autism in the United States, as a recent surge in diagnoses has fueled speculations about various possible causes of the disorder.
For scientists, both the origins of and potential treatments for the disorder remain a mystery.
With every decade of advancing age starting with men in their teens and twenties, the new study found, older fathers pose a growing risk to their children when it comes to autism -- unhappy evidence that the medical risks associated with late parenthood are not just the province of older mothers, as much previous research has suggested.
Three earlier studies looking at the relationship between paternal age and autism have produced mixed results; the new study is the most rigorous analysis conducted to date.
The federal government estimates that the risk for autism spectrum disorders in the United States is around 3.4 for every 1,000 children between the ages of 3 and 10.
Enduring disparities in access to health care complicate the picture.
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