Studies on treating pernicious puberty in autistic children

I am looking for information on all treatment options from behavioral to chemical (which I hope to avoid).

Also, any research that notes specific side effects of Lupron injections and/or transplants for autistic children. (My nephew has been receiving Lupron and we have noticed a marked decrease in speaking - down to almost none).

Hi musicfidget, and welcome to IAN.

I think what you are asking about is precocious puberty, or puberty that starts much earlier than you would generally expect. I am no expert on this, but have found an online medical description on e-medicine/WebMD here: http://emedicine.medscape.com/article/924002-overview

They also discuss possible treatments, here: http://emedicine.medscape.com/article/924002-treatment

I could find nothing in the medical literature that discussed precocious puberty and autism, or that theorized that this condition occurs more frequently in children with autism.

There are theories that, in some way, high levels of fetal testosterone are related somehow to autism, but that is a very different topic. See, for example, "Fetal Testosterone and Autistic Traits," by Simon Baron-Cohen and colleagues: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/18547459?itool=EntrezSystem2.PEntrez.Pubmed.Pubmed_ResultsPanel.Pubmed_RVDocSum&ordinalpos=8

There has also been some recent controversy about the use of Lupron to treat children with autism, based in part on the aforementioned theory. Unfortunately, this is being done in the absence of any replicated research, and has been condemned by many scientists, including Simon Baron-Cohen, the researcher who has written a great deal about the "extreme male brain" theory of autism and a possible link with high levels of fetal testosterone. See an article, 'Miracle Drug' Called Junk Science, from the Chicago Tribune, here: http://www.chicagotribune.com/health/chi-autism-lupron-may21,0,242705.story

I hope this information proves helpful, and that our readers will share if they have had an experience with either precocious puberty in their child with autism or with Lupron.