Valproate Acid in Pregnancy

A December report in the medical Journal 'Neurology' has reported a strong link between exposure to the anti-convulsant drug valproate acid and the later diagnosis of Autism:

http://www.medscape.com/viewarticle/584582?src=mp&spon=30&uac=126881ET

The study followed 632 children.

The prevelance of ASD in childen exposed to valproate acid in utero was 6.3%

The prevelance of ASD in children not exposed to calproat acid in utero was 0.9%

One study proves nothing at all, it only means that we must look in that direction. You see until a study can be replicated then no one can be sure if it the truth or not. Take a look at the Wakefeild studies everyone just took his word and ran with it and hundreds of thousands of people were emotionally, financially and yes sometimes even physically hurt because of a bogus story.

'One study proves nothing at all, it only means that we must look in that direction. You see until a study can be replicated then no one can be sure if it the truth or not'.

Actually, there are a dozen papers that have noted the association between prenatal exposure to valproate acid and Fetal Valproate Acid Syndrome, which is associated with poor developmental outcomes, including autism.

You can get a list of the refernces in The 2005 edition of the Handbook of Autism and Pervasive Developmental Disorders edited by Fred Volkmar (page 555 -556) who is also the editor of the Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders.

RAJ wrote:

'One study proves nothing at all, it only means that we must look in that direction. You see until a study can be replicated then no one can be sure if it the truth or not'.

Actually, there are a dozen papers that have noted the association between prenatal exposure to valproate acid and Fetal Valproate Acid Syndrome, which is associated with poor developmental outcomes, including autism.

You can get a list of the refernces in The 2005 edition of the Handbook of Autism and Pervasive Developmental Disorders edited by Fred Volkmar (page 555 -556) who is also the editor of the Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders.

I stand corrected however it still has not been looked at enough in my opinion. You look at some of these medications they are linking to autism, and it seems a lot of autistic people often go on those drugs later in life. So it begs the question are drugs doing something to them, or are their mothers just carrying the autism genes which don't manifest as autism but other stuff perhaps depression, or seizures etc. so they need the medications.

"I stand corrected however it still has not been looked at enough in my opinion. You look at some of these medications they are linking to autism, and it seems a lot of autistic people often go on those drugs later in life. So it begs the question are drugs doing something to them, or are their mothers just carrying the autism genes which don't manifest as autism but other stuff perhaps depression, or seizures etc. so they need the medications"

Actually Valproate Acid is contraindicted for use in pregnancy but is still in use.

Animal studies have also shown that prenatal exposure to Valproate Acid is associated with the same brain structural abnormalities reported in autism autopsy cases (Cerebellar pathology) and has been proposed as a useful animal model for autism.

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/9100317?

The resistance for any explanation for ASD etiology other than genetics accounts for the disinterest in the autism research community. The associations between ASD and any environmental cause have all come from researchers outside the close knit network of autism researchers.

Hi RAJ. I did just want to add that there is a growing interest in environmental factors in the autism research community. For example, the Autism Phenome Project at the U.C. Davis M.I.N.D. Institute has an entire section focused on environmental exposures. One recent study I found particularly fascinating was one that looked at increased levels of autism in children whose mothers were exposed to organochlorine pesticides while pregnant: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/17938740?dopt=abstract

I do not, however, believe this last finding has been replicated yet.