COVID-19 Pandemic Babies: New Study Debunks Autism Risk Fears

US research team: “Children born before and after the pandemic have no difference in risk of autism”

One of the concerns that has grown during the COVID-19 pandemic is that autism could increase. However, a study of babies exposed to COVID-19 in the womb during the pandemic found that the risk of autism was no higher than that of children before the pandemic.

Professor Danny Dumitriu’s team at Columbia University’s Sagelos School of Medicine announced on the 24th in the American Medical Association Journal JAMA Network Open that this was the result of a study conducted on 2,000 children born between January 2018 and September 2021.

“The COVID-19 pandemic has raised concerns among pediatricians, researchers, and developmental scientists about the potential for an increase in autism rates,” said Professor Dumitriu. “But fortunately, this study found no such increase.”

During the pandemic, rumors that vaccines can cause autism and other conditions have spread, and experts have even suggested that stress caused by lockdowns can have a negative impact on pregnant women and fetuses, raising concerns that autism in children may increase.

The study involved 2,499 children born at NewYork-Presbyterian Morgan Stanley Children’s Hospital and Allen Hospital from January 2018 to September 2021. Of the 516 children born before the pandemic and 1,533 born during the pandemic, 1,198 were not exposed to COVID-19 in the womb, 231 were exposed, and 104 had unknown exposure.

The team calculated the risk of autism by assessing the behavior of children aged 16 to 30 months using a neurodevelopmental screening questionnaire for parents. They compared scores between children born before and during the pandemic, and between children exposed to COVID-19 in the womb and those who were not.

The analysis found no significant difference in autism test positivity rates between children born before the pandemic and children born during the pandemic.

In particular, the study found that children exposed to COVID-19 in the womb had lower rates of positive autism tests than children who were not exposed.

Professor Dumitriu said, “This study is not a diagnostic survey for autism, but a survey on the risk of autism through a questionnaire for parents, so it is still too early to provide a definitive diagnostic value,” but added, “This is comforting news for pregnant women who are worried about autism in their children due to the still prevalent COVID-19.”

He continued, “These are very reassuring research results, as it is known that autism is affected by the environment during the fetal period,” but added, “However, we will continue to track the children who participated in the study to see if they develop autism or other disorders, as disabilities can appear later in life.”

◆ 출처 : JAMA Network Open, Dani Dumitriu et al., ‘Positive Autism Screening Rates in Toddlers Born During the COVID-19 Pandemic’,