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. 2022 Nov;52(11):5064-5071.
doi: 10.1007/s10803-021-05339-4. Epub 2021 Nov 12.

Peri-Pregnancy Cannabis Use and Autism Spectrum Disorder in the Offspring: Findings from the Study to Explore Early Development

Carolyn DiGuiseppi  1 , Tessa Crume  2 , Julia Van Dyke  2 , Katherine R Sabourin  2 , Gnakub N Soke  3 , Lisa A Croen  4 , Julie L Daniels  5 , Li-Ching Lee  6 , Laura A Schieve  3 , Gayle C Windham  7 , Sandra Friedman  8 , Cordelia Robinson Rosenberg  8
Affiliations

Peri-Pregnancy Cannabis Use and Autism Spectrum Disorder in the Offspring: Findings from the Study to Explore Early Development

Carolyn DiGuiseppi et al. J Autism Dev Disord. 2022 Nov.

Abstract

The association of autism spectrum disorder (ASD) with self-reported maternal cannabis use from 3 months pre-conception to delivery ("peri-pregnancy") was assessed in children aged 30-68 months, born 2003 to 2011. Children with ASD (N = 1428) were compared to children with other developmental delays/disorders (DD, N = 1198) and population controls (POP, N = 1628). Peri-pregnancy cannabis use was reported for 5.2% of ASD, 3.2% of DD and 4.4% of POP children. Adjusted odds of peri-pregnancy cannabis use did not differ significantly between ASD cases and DD or POP controls. Results were similar for any use during pregnancy. However, given potential risks suggested by underlying neurobiology and animal models, further studies in more recent cohorts, in which cannabis use and perception may have changed, are needed.

Keywords: Autism spectrum disorder; Cannabis; Epidemiology; Marijuana.

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Conflict of interest statement

Declarations

Conflict of interest All authors declare they have no conflict of interest.

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