Role of environmental and genetic factors in autism spectrum disorder

The aim of this study was to find out the environmental as well as genetic factors responsible for
increasing the number of autism spectrum disorder (ASD) patients in Bangladesh. A questionnaire
was developed based on 12 environmental factors and genetic aspects. Sixty six patients of ASD
and 66 non-ASD control were selected randomly. Among the environmental factors, the age of the
mother, premature birth, air pollution, age of the father, hypoxia during childbirth and oral
contraceptive came out as significant (p<0.05) factors for ASD incidence compared to the control.
Association of multiple factors on an individual was found to be crucial to enhance the risk and
exposure to five and six factors was statistically significant (p<0.05) for ASD development.
Prospective parents should try to keep the number of risk factors as low as possible before 1-2
months of pregnancy, during pregnancy and 1-2 years after the child birth (for child only).

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