Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2017 Nov;47(11):3574-3588.
doi: 10.1007/s10803-017-3271-5.

Behavioral Phenotype of ASD Preschoolers with Gastrointestinal Symptoms or Food Selectivity

Margherita Prosperi  1 , Elisa Santocchi  1 , Giulia Balboni  2 , Antonio Narzisi  1 , Margherita Bozza  3 , Francesca Fulceri  1 , Fabio Apicella  1 , Roberta Igliozzi  1 , Angela Cosenza  1 , Raffaella Tancredi  1 , Sara Calderoni  4   5 , Filippo Muratori  1   6
Affiliations

Behavioral Phenotype of ASD Preschoolers with Gastrointestinal Symptoms or Food Selectivity

Margherita Prosperi et al. J Autism Dev Disord. 2017 Nov.

Abstract

This study investigated the prevalence and type of gastrointestinal (GI) and food selectivity (FS) symptoms in 163 preschoolers with ASD, and their possible links with core ASD features and emotional/behavioural problems. 40.5% of children with ASD had at least one severe GI symptom or FS. Preschoolers with and without GI symptoms and with and without FS were significantly different on several emotional/behavioural problems and restrictive/repetitive behaviours, whereas they did not differ significantly on performance IQ and autistic severity. The GI plus FS group presented with Sleep Problems, Self-injurious Behaviors and Anxiety Problems. Results indicated the need for early identification of GI disturbances and FS in order to design tailored intervention for these symptoms frequently associated to challenging behaviours in ASD.

Keywords: Anxiety Problems; Child Behavior Checklist 1½–5; Externalizing Problems; Restrictive and repetitive behaviours; Sleep Problems; Young Children.

PubMed Disclaimer

References

    1. Autism Res. 2014 Aug;7(4):501-6 - PubMed
    1. Autism. 2003 Jun;7(2):165-71 - PubMed
    1. J Autism Dev Disord. 2000 Jun;30(3):205-23 - PubMed
    1. J Autism Dev Disord. 2013 Dec;43(12):2737-47 - PubMed
    1. Dev Period Med. 2015 Apr-Jun;19(2):157-61 - PubMed