A 37-year-old member asked:
If one parent has a very mild form of autism, would his child most surely have autism?
3 doctor answers • 9 doctors weighed in
Dr. Taliba Fosteranswered
Child Psychiatry 19 years experience
Not sure.: Autism is a disorder that is very difficult to attribute to one specific factor.
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Dr. Glen Elliott commented
Child Psychiatry 45 years experience
If you are considering having a child, a consultation with a genetic counselor will give you the very latest dta on what is known about risk factors. That said, the most likely answer will be that there proably is some increassed risk, but we don't know how much--and odds still are in favor of the child not being autistic.
Apr 13, 2012
Dr. Robert Marvitanswered
Psychiatry 59 years experience
No: There is some evidence of genetic loading but clearly not one to one.
Created for people with ongoing healthcare needs but benefits everyone.
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Dr. James Fergusonanswered
Pediatrics 48 years experience
Seek evaluation: This is an evolving area of medicine and you question is a good one.First, you say mild autism, but that sort of label is a confusing one.How and why this diagnosis was made should be looked at. A meeting with a medical geneticist can review this and see if the label is not covering up a potential inheritable condition. If so,risk could be as high as 50%.
Created for people with ongoing healthcare needs but benefits everyone.
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Last updated Apr 14, 2016
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