Austism and epilepsy: A "chicken or egg" situation
Nitin K.Sethi, Assistant Professor of Neurology, New York-Presbyterian Hospital, Weill Cornell Medical Center 525 East 68th Street, New York, NY 1006sethinitinmd@hotmail.com
Submitted July 25, 2016
I read with interest the article by Sundelin et al. which looked at the risk of autism spectrum disorder (ASD) in individuals with epilepsy and in first degree relatives. [1] Epilepsy is more common in individuals with ASD and ASD is more common in individuals with childhood onset epilepsy (and in their siblings and offspring), creating a "chicken or egg" situation: A situation in which it is impossible to say which of the two existed first and which caused the other one. The two conditions likely share common and yet undetermined genetic pathophysiological mechanisms. It will be interesting to see the relationship between ASD and epilepsy in other patient population groups, such as India where epilepsy is common, but not ASD.
1. Sundelin HE, Larsson H, Lichtenstein P, et al. Autism and epilepsy: A population-based nationwide cohort study. Neurology 2016;87:192-197.
For disclosures, please contact the editorial office at journal@neurology.org.
I read with interest the article by Sundelin et al. which looked at the risk of autism spectrum disorder (ASD) in individuals with epilepsy and in first degree relatives. [1] Epilepsy is more common in individuals with ASD and ASD is more common in individuals with childhood onset epilepsy (and in their siblings and offspring), creating a "chicken or egg" situation: A situation in which it is impossible to say which of the two existed first and which caused the other one. The two conditions likely share common and yet undetermined genetic pathophysiological mechanisms. It will be interesting to see the relationship between ASD and epilepsy in other patient population groups, such as India where epilepsy is common, but not ASD.
1. Sundelin HE, Larsson H, Lichtenstein P, et al. Autism and epilepsy: A population-based nationwide cohort study. Neurology 2016;87:192-197.
For disclosures, please contact the editorial office at journal@neurology.org.