Ultrasounds pose autism risk during early pregnancy warns researchers
ULTRASOUNDS during early pregnancy could see autistic children develop more severe symptoms, research suggests.
Autistic children of mothers who had ultrasounds in their first trimester had more severe symptoms
It found that autistic children of mothers who had ultrasound scans in the first trimester were more severely affected by their condition.
The research is borne out by animal studies which show how ultrasound can affect brain development.
The study at Washington University, in Seattle, examined the ultrasound records of mothers to more than 100 autistic children.
The children involved all had a genetic variant which made them more likely to develop the condition.
The researchers examined the ultrasound records of the mothers of 100 autistic children
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The research does not claim that ultrasounds cause autism but may make the symptons worse
Scientists are not claiming ultrasound caused the autism but it did make the symptoms worse. Professor Sara Webb, who led the research, told pregnant women: “Don’t have ultrasound in the first trimester if there is no medical need – you may be putting your unborn foetus at unnecessary risk.”
But Professor Jim Dornan, from Queen’s University, Belfast, said: “Until there are more rigorous studies no conclusions can be drawn.”