A Longitudinal Study of Head Circumference Trajectories in Autism and Autistic Traits.
Increased head circumference is an established finding in autism spectrum disorder (ASD); however, it is unclear when this increase occurs, if it persists and whether it manifests across the whole ASD spectrum. Head circumference is a strong predictor of brain size and can therefore provide key insi...
| Published in: | Journal of Autism & Developmental Disorders Vol. 56; no. 2; pp. 808 - 819 |
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| Main Authors: | , , , , , |
| Format: | research tables/charts Journal Article |
| Published: |
Springer Nature
Feb2026
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| Online Access: | View this record in EBSCOhost |
| fields | @attributes: recordID: 1 pdfLink: plink: https://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=ccm&AN=191290387&site=ehost-live header: @attributes: shortDbName: ccm uiTerm: 191290387 longDbName: CINAHL Complete uiTag: AN controlInfo: bkinfo: dissinfo: jinfo: jid: 01623257 AUT jtl: Journal of Autism & Developmental Disorders issn: 01623257 maglogo: N pubinfo: dt: Feb2026 vid: 56 iid: 2 pid: 237 pub: Springer Nature place: New York, New York artinfo: ui: 191290387 180197288 191290387 191290387 10.1007/s10803-024-06578-x 191290387 ppf: 808 ppct: 11 formats: fmt: – @attributes: type: T – @attributes: type: P tig: atl: A Longitudinal Study of Head Circumference Trajectories in Autism and Autistic Traits. aug: au: Ashley, Sarah A. Merritt, Kate Solmi, Francesca Laguna, Pedro L. Reichenberg, Abraham David, Anthony S. affil: https://ror.org/02jx3x895 Division of Psychiatry, University College London, London, UK sug: subj: Head Circumference In Adolescence Head Circumference In Infancy and Childhood Autism Spectrum Disorder Diagnosis Brain Physiology Neurodevelopment Human United Kingdom Male Female Child Adolescence Prospective Studies Funding Source Checklists Data Analysis Software Univariate Statistics Multivariate Statistics Linear Regression Descriptive Statistics Post Hoc Analysis T-Tests Child: 6-12 years Adolescent: 13-18 years Male Female ab: Increased head circumference is an established finding in autism spectrum disorder (ASD); however, it is unclear when this increase occurs, if it persists and whether it manifests across the whole ASD spectrum. Head circumference is a strong predictor of brain size and can therefore provide key insights into brain development in ASD. We used data from the Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents and Children to compare head circumference trajectories from birth to 15 years in children with an ASD diagnosis (N = 78, controls = 6,404) or elevated autistic traits as measured using the Social Communication Disorder Checklist (N = 639, controls = 6,230). Exploratory analyses were conducted in those with ASD and co-morbid cognitive learning needs (CLN). Children with an ASD diagnosis had larger head circumference from birth across childhood and adolescence compared to controls in univariable (B = 0.69, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 0.28–1.09, p = 0.001) and multivariable models (B = 0.38, 95% CI: 0.003–0.75, p = 0.048). Differences were more marked in those with co-morbid CLN. Children with elevated autistic traits had significantly smaller head circumference compared to controls. There was weak evidence of group differences when height was included as a covariate. Head circumference trajectories in ASD deviate from control children and persist until adolescence. Autistic traits were associated with smaller head circumference, suggesting distinct growth trajectories between clinical cases from those with non-clinical traits. pubtype: Academic Journal doctype: research tables/charts Journal Article ougenre: Article language: English refInfo: holdings: @attributes: islocal: N |
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