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869 – Infections During Pregnancy And After Birth, And The Risk Of Autism Spectrum Disorders: a Register-based Study Utilizing a Danish Historic Birth Cohort

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  15 April 2020

M.W. Abdallah ,
D.M. Hougaard ,
B. Nørgaard-Pedersen ,
J. Grove ,
E.C. Bonefeld-Jørgensen  and
E.L. Mortensen
M.W. Abdallah
Affiliation:
Section for Epidemiology, Aarhus University HEALTH, Aarhus Department of Clinical Biochemistry and Immunology, Statens Serum Institute, Copenhagen, Denmark Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Rostock University Hospital, University of Rostock, Rostock, Germany
D.M. Hougaard
Affiliation:
Department of Clinical Biochemistry and Immunology, Statens Serum Institute, Copenhagen, Denmark
B. Nørgaard-Pedersen
Affiliation:
Department of Clinical Biochemistry and Immunology, Statens Serum Institute, Copenhagen, Denmark
J. Grove
Affiliation:
Department of Biomedicine & Bioinformatics Research Centre (BiRC), Aarhus University HEALTH
E.C. Bonefeld-Jørgensen
Affiliation:
Center for Arctic Environmental Medicine & Unit of Cellular and Molecular Toxicology, Aarhus University HEALTH, Aarhus
E.L. Mortensen
Affiliation:
Institute of Public Health & Center for Healthy Aging, University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Denmark

Abstract

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Introduction

Mounting evidence suggests that immune dysfunction may play a crucial role in the pathophysiology of autism spectrum disorders (ASD). In addition, several studies have reported that congenital and postnatal infections may contribute to the neurobiological basis of ASD.

Aims/objectives

This study aimed to investigate the relationship between infections during pregnancy and after birth, and ASD.

Methods

A case-control study design was adopted. Both cases and controls were retrieved from a historic birth cohort (HBC) maintained at Statens Serum Institute in Copenhagen/Denmark and were followed up retrospectively during pregnancy and after birth over four pre-defined periods. Study subjects were followed-up utilizing Danish nation-wide health registers for outpatient and hospital admissions due to infections. Associations between infections and ASD were analyzed using Mantel- Haenszel estimate of the odds ratio (OR) and logistic regression models.

Results

In total, 414 ASD cases and 820 controls were followed-up during pregnancy and a mean 16.3 years after birth. Crude, but not adjusted estimates showed that ASD cases had an increased risk of hospital admission due to infection at the end of the first year of life (OR = 1.48 [range: 1.07-2.05], P = 0.02) and at the end of the follow-up period (OR = 1.30 [range: 1.02-1.64], P = 0.03).

Conclusion

The present findings indicate that infections have a potential role in the pathophysiology of ASD; however, further studies are necessary to determine if infections etiologically contribute to ASD or if they act as an epiphenomenon due to distorted immunity in children with ASD.

Type
Abstract
Information
European Psychiatry , Volume 28 , Issue S1: Abstracts of the 21th European Congress of Psychiatry , 2013 , 28-E325
Copyright
Copyright © European Psychiatric Association 2013
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