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Episodes of fever during pregnancy increase the risk of giving birth to children with autism
Last reviewed: 23.04.2024
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Women who have experienced high fever during pregnancy are twice as likely to have autistic children, according to scientists at the University of California, Davis, USA.
For the study, specialists selected 538 children with autism spectrum disorder, 163 with developmental delays and 421 with normal development without any problems. The mothers of the subjects provided information about the state of their health during the gestation of the fetus.
After taking into account differences in race, age, insurance, smoking, maternal education and place of residence at the time of delivery, it was found that in women who experienced uncontrolled temperature increases during pregnancy, children developed autism twice as often, than the offspring of mothers who did not have a fever during the gestation period. Heat during fetal gestation was also associated with a doubled risk of developmental delays.
Inflammation accompanies an increase in temperature in the body, and inflammatory proteins of cytokines can penetrate the placenta into the fetus. This penetration can pose a risk if it affects the development of the brain in the embryo at a key stage. Experiments on animals have shown that the effect of proinflammatory cytokines during pregnancy causes subsequent behavioral problems in animals. In addition, heat can overactivate neurons, which leads to a disruption in the growth of the fetal brain.
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